Michael Batchelor's Blog, page 6
October 4, 2024
The Birds & The Bees
You open your flower
And take my nectar
In your stigma
That sticky centre
And in your womb
That warm room
A bud blooms
Until one day
Through soft petals
It blossoms
Flower and placental
Open and awake
In a bright world
Warm and
Furled
And take my nectar
In your stigma
That sticky centre
And in your womb
That warm room
A bud blooms
Until one day
Through soft petals
It blossoms
Flower and placental
Open and awake
In a bright world
Warm and
Furled
October 1, 2024
Election Time
Pollies point the finger
At each other
But it only hurts
Our sisters
And brothers
Who are sick and tired
Of the blame game
While providing
The same
Failings
And false promises
That comes with only
Two choices
At each other
But it only hurts
Our sisters
And brothers
Who are sick and tired
Of the blame game
While providing
The same
Failings
And false promises
That comes with only
Two choices
September 21, 2024
Tunnel Vision
The money-chasers will always
Tell you to diversify
Broaden your horizons
Don’t put your eggs in one basket
Have a ‘portfolio’
But this is counterproductive advice
To an artist
Who has tunnel vision
And would rather die
Than not pursue that one thing
The book
The painting
The sculpture
That one thing
That sets their soul alight
And keeps them from
The grave
I'm glad I have
Tunnel vision
Tell you to diversify
Broaden your horizons
Don’t put your eggs in one basket
Have a ‘portfolio’
But this is counterproductive advice
To an artist
Who has tunnel vision
And would rather die
Than not pursue that one thing
The book
The painting
The sculpture
That one thing
That sets their soul alight
And keeps them from
The grave
I'm glad I have
Tunnel vision
The Individual
I met an individual today
She came up behind me
A short, middle-aged lady
With cigarette-dried skin
And said:
'Whattaya think of vapes?'
I didn't think much of them
I didn't use them
'I dunno.'
'Do ya think they're
Good for society,' she continued
'Or do ya think
They're a chemical weapon
Made by the Chinese.'
That was above my pay grade
So I said:
'I dunno.'
She walked off after that
And I couldn't help think
That she was a weirdo
But then I remembered that
I'm always complaining that
Everyone's the same
And there's no individuals anymore
(Aside from me, of course)
And yet I'd just met one
And turned my nose up
At her
I guess I'm just like
Everyone else
She came up behind me
A short, middle-aged lady
With cigarette-dried skin
And said:
'Whattaya think of vapes?'
I didn't think much of them
I didn't use them
'I dunno.'
'Do ya think they're
Good for society,' she continued
'Or do ya think
They're a chemical weapon
Made by the Chinese.'
That was above my pay grade
So I said:
'I dunno.'
She walked off after that
And I couldn't help think
That she was a weirdo
But then I remembered that
I'm always complaining that
Everyone's the same
And there's no individuals anymore
(Aside from me, of course)
And yet I'd just met one
And turned my nose up
At her
I guess I'm just like
Everyone else
September 19, 2024
Over
Overfed
Overstimulated
Oversexed
Overwhelmed
Overweight
Overpriced
Overdue
Overrun
Overregulation
Overzealous
Overprescribing
Overachieving
Overpopulated
Oversimplifying
Overcommitment
Overidealising
Overfertilised
Overanalysed
Over it
Overstimulated
Oversexed
Overwhelmed
Overweight
Overpriced
Overdue
Overrun
Overregulation
Overzealous
Overprescribing
Overachieving
Overpopulated
Oversimplifying
Overcommitment
Overidealising
Overfertilised
Overanalysed
Over it
September 7, 2024
The Facade
The house
The car
The job
The loyalty card
The annual leave
The tax return
The birthday card
The interest accrued
The capital of Spain
The public holiday
The bachelor's degree
The 'I' before 'e'
The political party
The sense of security
The colour blue
The right shoe
The month of May
The red tablecloth
The urgent email
The government bailout
The private plane
The whole game
That soul-sucking drain
Projected through the brain
Stuck in eternity's
Frame
The car
The job
The loyalty card
The annual leave
The tax return
The birthday card
The interest accrued
The capital of Spain
The public holiday
The bachelor's degree
The 'I' before 'e'
The political party
The sense of security
The colour blue
The right shoe
The month of May
The red tablecloth
The urgent email
The government bailout
The private plane
The whole game
That soul-sucking drain
Projected through the brain
Stuck in eternity's
Frame
The Struggling Artist
It's always bothered me
How struggling artists
Are ridiculed
By those around them
And yet they love
The successful artists
But those artists
Weren't born successful
They struggled
For a long time
Before they made it
So it's like making fun
Of a student
Who's yet to graduate
And if every
Struggling artist
Listened to the
Ignorant critic
Then we'd have no
Successful artists
And wouldn't that be
A sad and
Colourless world
How struggling artists
Are ridiculed
By those around them
And yet they love
The successful artists
But those artists
Weren't born successful
They struggled
For a long time
Before they made it
So it's like making fun
Of a student
Who's yet to graduate
And if every
Struggling artist
Listened to the
Ignorant critic
Then we'd have no
Successful artists
And wouldn't that be
A sad and
Colourless world
For The Artists
This poem is
A tribute
To all the struggling
Artists
The writers
Painters
Sculptures
Etc.
Who are selling
Their souls for
Money so that they
Can fill their soul
On the side
Because it's a hard pursuit
Following a passion
That nobody
But you
Truly cares about
And you'll be ridiculed
For your efforts
Sometimes by those
Close to you
Who don't understand
Who have made money
Their passion
But do not be dismayed
Because it is better to
Die poor
And have a passion
Then to die rich
And not have that thing
That strums your soul
A tribute
To all the struggling
Artists
The writers
Painters
Sculptures
Etc.
Who are selling
Their souls for
Money so that they
Can fill their soul
On the side
Because it's a hard pursuit
Following a passion
That nobody
But you
Truly cares about
And you'll be ridiculed
For your efforts
Sometimes by those
Close to you
Who don't understand
Who have made money
Their passion
But do not be dismayed
Because it is better to
Die poor
And have a passion
Then to die rich
And not have that thing
That strums your soul
September 3, 2024
Free Will
If free will
Is what's keeping
God from intervening
Then I'll be the first
To surrender it
I'll do what needs
To be done
To stop the
Holocausts
The atom bombings
The rapes of Nankings
I'll do it
Just come down
Or up
Or through
Wherever you are
And tell us
What to do
Is what's keeping
God from intervening
Then I'll be the first
To surrender it
I'll do what needs
To be done
To stop the
Holocausts
The atom bombings
The rapes of Nankings
I'll do it
Just come down
Or up
Or through
Wherever you are
And tell us
What to do
August 28, 2024
Voting In The Dictator
You watch their interviews
Read their propaganda
And then
Come election time
You’ve gotta go
Into the box
And pencil in a name
A party
And you can’t help
But feel useless
Because yes
You’re voting
And you feel democratic
But really
You’re just
Voting in the dictator
Who
Once elected
Will decide on
What to do
Without you
And you have no say
So the whole
Democracy things feels
A little limited
And kind of like
A facade
Made to make you
Feel like
You had a say
When really
You didn’t
At all
Read their propaganda
And then
Come election time
You’ve gotta go
Into the box
And pencil in a name
A party
And you can’t help
But feel useless
Because yes
You’re voting
And you feel democratic
But really
You’re just
Voting in the dictator
Who
Once elected
Will decide on
What to do
Without you
And you have no say
So the whole
Democracy things feels
A little limited
And kind of like
A facade
Made to make you
Feel like
You had a say
When really
You didn’t
At all
