Tag: poetry

the lonely pebble(2)

Ian Hunter1 Comment

the rough rock bounced around

one of many living in the river bed

bumping and grinding

rolling and tumbling for centuries

transformed into a smooth pebble

chatting constantly with the other pebbles

he dreamed about adventures

exploring life outside the river

his friends told him to be careful

maneuvering himself to the shallows

hoping to leave the water

he saw people collecting pebbles

please pick me he whispered

one day he was picked up

taken away as a trophy

gently caressed and loved

at first he was very happy

until he was discarded in a drawer

laying abandoned in the dark

the pebble was sad

he stayed there for many years

until a boy discovered him

he took the pebble everywhere he went

sleeping under his pillow

on his desk at school

but the pebble was still sad

he missed being with all the other pebbles

the boy sensed that the pebble was unhappy

he took the pebble down to the river bank

asking if he wanted to go home

feeling the pebble glowing warm in his hands

the boy knew what he had to do

he tossed the pebble in the river

bumping and grinding again

trying to stay deep in the river

the pebble was happy again

better to be in a crowd of friends 

than a lonely trophy pebble

Marina sunrise

Ian HunterLeave a comment

The marina was full of sailboats

All sleeping sound at night

Most of them on permanent moorings

A few were overnight visitors

They were the ones who woke up first

Chatting incessantly at dawn

Speculating if the sunrise would be special today

The long timers were not amused

Its only a sunrise

We get them here most days

Not worth waking up for

Keep down the chatter 

Some of use want to sleep more

The visitors ignored them

Wow look at that big sky

The clouds are lit up orange and purple

Lets turn to watch the sunrise

They were in awe of the spectacle

The rising orange sun floated on the horizon

Was it under the ocean all night

Did the sun just wake up too

Does the sun make these colors for fun

Is he in awe looking at us 

This could never get tiring

The sun rose higher and the colors faded away

Soon it was all over with dull cloudy skies

Wow that was amazing

You resident sail boats are so lucky

You should all we waking early daily to watch this

The residents were totally unfazed

Go back to sleep

It was only a sunrise

You need to rest more

We have a hard day of sailing ahead

The wind started to pick up

Chopping up the surface of the bay

A few early sailers appeared

Rolling down sails in preparation

The newcomers were excited

Oh we get to explore this bay

Maybe we will see dolphins

Lets see who can sail fastest

I will win today

The residents were not amused

Why do they let visitors moor here

They always wake up too early

Its was just another sunrise 

My sails are still tired from racing yesterday

A few hours later

All the visitors were away sailing

The remaining residents dozed

Peace at last

Thank goodness they left

I hope they all sink today

There was however one dissenter

I am glad they woke us early

Sunrise was truly incredible today

I want to be a dictator

Ian Hunter2 Comments

I am seriously considering becoming a dictator

Not the autocratic leader of a nation kind

Having my spoken words put directly into writing kind of dictator

That will eliminate the tedious task of typing

Which I have never been any good at

Despite being welded to a keyboard for many decades

I have never mastered multi finger key stokes

Hunting and pecking with just two fingers

Always the index finger on my left hand

But my right hand uses my middle finger

I have never noticed that until now

There must be an explanation for it

Even more weird is that I use the side of my middle finger

As my right index finger points towards the screen

Reminds me of a china cup afternoon tea drinker

With their pinky finger delicately pointing skyward

I hope that my middle finger keystroke is not deemed to be rude typing

If it is then my left hand pleads not guilty

My right hand will reluctantly go to jail in disgrace

Anyway back to being a dictator

It will be so much faster to use speech to text software

I will be able to focus on the screen as the words pop up

Unlike now where I look mostly at the keyboard

Occasionally looking up to see the numerous spelling errors

Mostly due to my fat right middle finger pressing the wrong key

Perhaps dictating is not the right way to go though

Much better to enjoy the silence of writing

Than listen to my own voice babbling on and on

I am sure it would annoy everybody in listening range

I am hoping that AI will invent a device to read minds

Then I could plug one in and point it to my shiny head

Watch my random thoughts appear on the screen in prose

Lets go one step further where everybody gets a thought reader

With an added adaptor for thought transmission

Then you will receive my daily writing directly into your head as a thought

You can even leave thought comments on a virtual Cheeky Monkey page

Which you never have to log onto because you will just think about it

No need to have a computer or keyboard at all in the future

AI will become so advanced that it will be able to predict my thoughts

My writing will continue well after I am dead thanks to AI taking over

It will be ever so easy to authenticate it as my writing 

You will spot the AI generated moddle fonger spelling mostakes

Butterflies in your stomach – YNWA

Ian HunterLeave a comment

Can you remember getting butterflies in your stomach

At a time when you were anxious or excited or both

Perhaps on your wedding day

Just before going on stage to perform

At the start of an important exam

During a job interview

Responding to a 911 call

Or falling in love

Your body is programmed

To react to your emotions

Your brain triggers the release of hormones

Giving you a burst of extra energy

And rewarding you with the sensation of pleasure

I can remember getting butterflies on such occasions

But in my case I get them at least twice a week at fixed times

Certainly around 3pm GMT of Saturdays 

When Liverpool usually play in the English Premier League

Today they kick off at 5.30pm un the UK

That is 12.30pm Eastern time in the US

My butterflies have been building up for a few days now

They woke me up this morning

They will be swarming in my tummy at 12.29pm

Just before the game with rivals Arsenal

I know they will soon settle down

Each time Liverpool have possession

My butterflies are instantly forgotten 

When Liverpool score a goal

The joy is off the Richter scale

But the butterflies will be back today

Every time Arsenal gain possession

Its exhausting repeatedly launching butterflies inside you

Fortunately the game only lasts 90 minutes

I pray for a perfect result before and during every game

Liverpool 3-1 Butterflies

YNWA

finally success

Ian Hunter1 Comment
Photo by Vlada Karpovich on Pexels.com

I close my eyes

Searching for darkness

Images flash through my mind

I plug my ears

Hoping for silence

Voices talk in my head

I sit on a soft chair

Wanting to relax

My back starts to ache

I stare at a blank computer screen

Fingers resting on the keyboard

Words start to fill the page

I stop writing to read what I have just written

It does not please me

Delete delete delete delete

I look out of the window

Waiting for inspiration

He never shows up

I turn on the TV

The guide has endless channels

None of them look interesting

I pick up a book

The story is so slow

I stop before the end of the first chapter

I stream relaxing jazz

Gently rocking in the chair

My foot starts tapping

Back to the computer

More words start flowing

I declare the delete key to be out of bounds

Finally success 

The 6.29 train from Grey Matter Pool is now arriving at Fingertips

Ian Hunter3 Comments

When its time to write my daily poem

I grab random words as they run fast through my mind

Capturing them in my neural net 

Tossing them into a large empty container at the back of my head

I fill up the container with water

Dead words silently slip out through the drain

Lively words float to the top singing

Dancing over the surface like olympic ice skaters

After I have been sufficiently mesmerized by their display

Words are invited to step out of my grey matter pool and dry off

Commuting words quickly line up for an approaching train

The 6.29 morning train for Fingertips is now approaching platform 7

The train rushes though my veins at lightening speed

The 6.29 train from Grey Matter Pool is now arriving at Fingertips

Words burst through the open doors and run towards the exits

Massive lines form at the turnstiles

My fingers start to swell up with commuting words

I read the next word in line and spell out his name on the keyboard

The turnstile clicks and he exits the station

Once on my computer screen he typically smiles at his new neighbors

I type as fast as I can to ease the pressure on my swollen fingers

Eventually they all get through and I can take a rest

Suddenly a fight breaks out as a gang of words become agitated

They took offense from the taunts of a nearby rival word gang

I send in the word police riot squad to break up the scuffle

Separating the offenders onto different parts of the page

Unfortunately some words keep resisting and have to be deleted

I feel sad for them having wasted a long journey

Eventually every word is in the right place

All excited to see which of them will make it up top into the title

Knowing that in a few minutes they will all journey to another computer or phone

Patiently waiting in cheekynonkeypoetry.com to be read by you

The monkey never tires from being cheeky

Ian Hunter11 Comments

In just a few short months, I have posted 100 poems on Cheekymonkeypoetry.com

It has been a fun to write, select photographs and publish something daily

I have enjoyed reading all the feedback comments

Thank you to all the followers for creating a thriving community of poetry readers

A big thank you to Addison and Abby for developing and maintaining the website

There is something magical about achieving a century

Whether its riding a bike for 100 miles

Or writing 100 poems in 100 days

Or scoring 100 runs at cricket

Or reaching the grand old age of 100 years

Reflecting on important milestones reminds you of your achievements

Its also a good time to reset your goals

Who knows what lies ahead for any of us

For as long as I am able to turn my thoughts into a piece of poetry

I plan to keep publishing something daily

The monkey never tires from being cheeky

Solving the poetic equation of LIFE

Ian Hunter6 Comments

I have always liked music

Literature plays a big role in my life

I am very fond of art

I always believed these were three completely different things

Each having its own unique place in the world

Something happened recently to change that

Upon noticing my music streaming App had a lyrics button

I started to read the lyrics while listening to the music

I discovered a new dimension

The singer was delivering a message with both words and notes

Allowing me to understand his feelings

I now listen to music in a different way

Searching for the feelings of the songwriter and composer

…………………………..

I have been watching lectures on the history of European art

All virtual thanks to the pandemic

So enlightening that art has been continually developing for centuries

Movements emerged as new artists experimented

Finding new ways to express their feelings

I now look at paintings in a different way

Searching for the feeling that the artist wanted to convey 

……………………..

Poetry warms my soul and make me feel different about life

The process of converting creative thinking into poetry is pure joy for me

I started to wonder if painters and songwriters felt the same way

…………………….

Then it hit me

Literature, art and music all have a common thread

They are all forms of poetry that convey feelings

………………………

Literature gives us poetry in words

Music is poetry with sounds 

Art is poetry with light

My Engineering background lit up the old gray matter

It can all be explained with mathematics

………………………….

Words = Poetry

Sounds = Poetry

Light = Poetry

Words + Sounds = Songs

Words + Light = Theatre

Sounds + Lights = Fireworks

Words + Sounds + Light = Life

Words + Sounds + Light + Wine  = Happy Life

Words + Sounds + Light + Wine + Chocolate = Very Happy Life

Bravo if you are now reaching for the wine bottle and chocolates while listening to your favorite music