It's Not What You Say

This was a follow-up to a writing exercise where we had to write a canzonetta. Note the refrain line.

It's Not What You Say
I listen, the music brings pleasure to me;
an aria sung by Domingo,
but as for the words? Well I don’t need to be
au fait with Italian lingo.
It could be the music that Puccini wrote,
it could be the voice, I’ll allow.
Whatever the reason, there’s one thing I note:
It’s not what you say, it is how.

In politics, candidates now realise
that questions are not such a risk.
Diverting the point, unrelated replies,
making jokes, shifting blame, being brisk.
I guess they need training to manage this skill –
an air of trust they can endow;
a paragon hiding a con, if you will:
it’s not what you say, it is how.

The second poem was the result of the exercise itself, with the them "contract". Naturally, I thought of a contract killer. Who wouldn't?

The Contract
He crouched behind the marble wall;
the shadows kept him out of view.
He waited, watching in the mall.
He had no nerves, ‘twas nothing new.
The crowds were held back, yet to come,
still waiting for the op’ning time.
He stroked the gun stock with his thumb.
This killing really was no crime.

The doors slid open. In he came,
the quarry that the man had sought.
He walked in like he had no shame;
the misery that he had brought.
The gunsight centred on his head.
He did not have too long a time;
before too long he would be dead.
This killing really was no crime.

Not to Fail and to Show Some Spine

The latest Pub Poets meeting had the theme "The Trail of the Lonesome Pine". My memory of Laurel and Hardy performing this goes back to 1975 when the song was released as a single in the UK. It reached number two in the charts, and was only held off the top spot by Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody. For a song popularised in the 1937 film Way Out West, I remember thinking that it was unusual for a 38 year old song to enter the charts.

When I came to write this poem, my thoughts were "what 38 year old film today in 2015 could inspire a song?" I then felt very old when the obvious film was "Star Wars". I wrote the poem so that (at a pinch) it could be sung to the melody of "The Trail of the Lonesome Pine". So here goes:

Not to Fail and to Show Some Spine
On a planet – name of Tatooine
was a boy called Luke.
Came a-cross a secret message – in
Re-tro-spect it was a fluke –
An R 2 droid was beeping, quite annoyed
as Luke heard what was said
by a girl with Danish pastries
stuck upon her head:

She – was – pleading for Obi wan Kenobi
Not to fail and to show some spine.
Luke decided then, to find old Ben;
They went to a place where they sold some wine
And there – was a bloke with a ship
They engaged – for a res-cue trip.
Han – joined – Luke and Obi wan Kenobi
Not to fail and to show some spine.

They set off for Planet Alderan
but all was not well.
They found Leia on an Empire ship;
broke her out a prison cell.
A brief spell in a waste compressor,
and then they got away
But Kenobi wasn’t one of them –
Naughty protégée.

Now – they – had no Obi Wan Kenobi
with them facing a tight deadline.
Though they’d found a way – to save the day,
the chance of success was borderline,
then Luke – found an extra resource;
he tapped in – to the mystical Force.
With the help of the spirit of Kenobi
he was able to show some spine.

Conspiracy

The Pub Poets Working group now have a periodic poetry challenge. Today's was to write something on the theme of "alien conspiracy", possibly using the "triolet" poetic form. 

Conspiracy

The truth is hidden, can’t you see?
It’s covered up by governments
whilst blaming eccentricity.
The truth is hidden, can’t you see?
Subverted, skirted constantly.
They won’t accept our evidence;
the truth is hidden, can’t you see?
It’s covered up by governments.

If we could show the truth of it,
I wonder what they’d try to do?
We wouldn’t see the benefit,
if we could show the truth of it.
They’d twist the lies to make them fit,
and Black Ops might be called in, too.
If we could show the truth of it,
I wonder what they’d try to do?