Best Childcare Poems
Oneness is silent,
Sweet and with sent,
And unity never ultimately shouts,
But in coalition mounts.
Unity can be found in a group or just the two of you,
In a community's graffiti artists with a rue,
In a school’s parents circle demanding more childcare,
Or in a company’s union who about pay care.
Oneness can be defined by stating,
That you are another person dating,
Romantically, politically or just socially,
By fashion, voice or class, or economically.
All people are one,
And one matters to everyone,
And we have unity with others,
When we come along side our brothers.
T~was not long ago,
O~nly wee ones you were.
M~onths, then years came and went
Y~earning to move on to matured growth and progress.
C~haracter-building, education, training
H~elping, assisting, childcare, economic strain!
I~ ndependently raising from wee ones to young adult; minimal help indeed!
L~ovingly caring such strength displaying,
D~aring all bad to overcome my good.
R~elentlessly working all week and week-ends,
E~endeavoring to keep 12 hour shifts and Full-time school!
N~ever complaining, always try to share with you all, and some others who
may be in a plight.
Thus, children, it may seem long ago, that Example, Caring, Individual Strength, helped Propelled your will to progress; despite the decision to deprive.
I swear madam
That your manners
Are worthy of a village dope
And your ambitions are tremendously humongous
At the expense of someone else;
And you are also so lazy
That there’s no time at all
To manage some cleanup and cooking
And no ironing and washing.
Childcare also not conducive
And job prohibited at all
But to the art of shopping
You dedicate your every day.
And to sum up this conversation:
Your ego – size of railway station
You also wither on a vine
(Above means that your talents
Are completely wasted).
Morning drizzle
Skyline looks teary;
Jogging feet struggle
~~~~~~~~~
New penthouse suite
By midtown place;
Blessings of peace
~~~~~~~~~
Time moves swiftly
Flying away;
Seize interlude
~~~~~~~~~
Small talk empties
Chit-chat delays;
Time oozes fast
~~~~~~~~~
Two black birds
Morning choral;
Balcony duet
~~~~~~~~~
Tropical heatwave
Humid sticky sweat;
Air-con relief
~~~~~~~~~
Mall sales boomerangs
Petty touting;
Urgent campaign
~~~~~~~~~~
Toy dog runs barking
Pink hair dye;
Same as lady master
~~~~~~~~~~
Childcare kids
Sing-song repetition;
Old nursery rhymes
~~~~~~~~~
Fragments of writes
Verse lines on-the-fly;
Haiku mood swing
~~~~~~~~~
Shopping lists
Foodstuff to buy;
Procure satisfaction
~~~~~~~~~
Time beyond
Chance upon;
Space now on
~~~~~~~~~
Mailbox full
Nobody's home;
Other matters call
~~~~~~~~~
Leon Enriquez
10 July 2016
Singapore
Dance of Graves
The dance of graves occurs more than we are prompted to imagine. We prefer to keep matters of death fit into that realm of Afterlife, where the divine mysteries are kept far beyond our daily lives, which are too full with concerns about budgets, health, and childcare.
we tend the grown vines
ripe with this day’s poems
holy calls to harvest
From the wedding vows to love devoutly unto death, our greater spirits adopt God’s greatest gift — Love, which our hearts compassionately open to each other. The passing years deepen the enfolding love, but being far outside perfection, we will inevitably hurt, will in turns lash out, scarring the shell of our spouse’s heart or thoughts.
deep in the cold earth
gold runs in cloaked gleaming veins
sought by yearning hearts
The graveyard has spaced its sloping, green mounds to embrace
our beloved dead, who humbly uttered their vows with hopes of forever feeling the touch, the closeness, and the eternal presence of that endeared mate. But, as lives survive and pass on, marriages, too, will last and end. Th one who remains may, perhaps, go on in a new marriage…So very well does Heaven hold the last cries of those beloveed who’ve passed on.
three mounds side by side
dance their love story
the grasps of loving passed on
Let me put your parenting skills
Under the microscope, my thrills!
You share your food with the young
You eat, regurgitate for the fledging
What childcare, what love & nurturing
You, bird parents take turns food hunting
I adore how you bring food to the nest
You feed the chicks as if you don’t rest!
You, dogs and cats hunt and share the kill
Mother dogs help the pups to eat to the fill
I see animals bring down prey and feast
In a social order, in packs, this, that beast
I see parent animals teach their young
To walk, hunt & who says that`s wrong?
Apes & simians feed each other when caring
For the wounded or the ill, when …yes, dating!
I don’t know whether elephants teach their young
Courting, but yes, food choices & a good tongue!
Discrete Haiku 1
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Slow morning stroll
Walking meditation;
Beneath heritage fig tree
~~~~~~~~~
Miniature dog barks
Squeaky voice tiny;
Big dog curious
~~~~~~~~~
November nap
Haze free moment;
Somnolent afternoon
~~~~~~~~~
Joy unveils
Emotional senses;
Ambrosia peach
~~~~~~~~~
Children gather
Two by two;
Childcare teacher guides
~~~~~~~~~
Playground escapades
Childhood restored;
For a short while
~~~~~~~~~
Savvy social media hype
Mountains from molehills;
Skewed opinions
~~~~~~~~~
Human tragedy
Daily news highlights;
Hatred gathers moss
~~~~~~~~~
Compassionate love
Tonic food;
Good for all
~~~~~~~~~
Leon Enriquez
20 November 2015
Singapore
Once upon a time there were two families,
In which the husbands were confronted with choices,
The consequences of which could be condemning their wives
To a lifetime of pill popping and labelling,
Although neither were told that in such stark terms.
Both wives freaked out with one of their babies,
Both husbands were asked if they wanted their wives to be hospitalised,
One said yes and one said no.
One wife is now a permanently depressed and not fit for much,
At home mostly by herself,
Relying on copious supplies of pills,
And visits from the other wife who is from the same ethnic group.
And she never stops ringing the wife not on pills all hours of the day.
Her husband has never come out of denial and ovoids his responsibility,
Their daughter now in her twenties had barely coped throughout,
And may or may not escape her Mothers fate.
For a start the Mother not on pills was paid by Barnardoes,
To help and support the child and Mother,
But that was only temporary,
And pretty soon the family was unsupported and the pill popping increased.
Now the other Husband made a different decision,
The family had three children,
All got a high education and have jobs or about to.
Admittedly the husbands were of a different nature,
The one who said no was an early childcare teacher,
Who could take up the slack,
Including taking two of the children to work with him for a year,
During the rough times.
I don't regret my decision,
Even though our marriage is far from perfect,
Especially as we see the consequences of a a different decision most weeks.
My wife is now studying
And has friends and not alone to overthink and reach for her pills.
But I do find it hard not to be angry with the other husband and his decision.
We used to be friends but now he is too proud to even talk to me,
You just can't help some people.
But never mind we can can spend $50 million on a children's playground,
Hundreds more on sports stadiums that most will never enter.
And next to nothing on reducing pill popping as a solution to all our problems.
Late evening flash
Moist breezy glimpse;
Abrupt rain
~~~~~~~~~
Strange journey
Dreamy silhouettes;
Vivid backdrop
~~~~~~~~~
Hazy skyline
Concrete toothpicks;
City skyscrapers
~~~~~~~~~
By city fringe
Curious onlookers;
Random commotion
~~~~~~~~~
New park bench
Metallic sparkle;
Cold stainless steel
~~~~~~~~~
Childcare centre
Small people congregate;
Life at play
~~~~~~~~~
By this park bench
Two lovers kiss;
Midnight tryst
~~~~~~~~~
Jog and log
Fitness agenda;
Gym workout
~~~~~~~~~
Last day here
September goodbyes;
Rain for tears
~~~~~~~~~
Book bazaar
Sun-baked tomes;
Wisdom ageing
~~~~~~~~~
Tea leaves wet
Hot brew swirls;
Aromatic interlude
~~~~~~~~~
Old-time ambience
Espresso moment;
Cafe glimpses
~~~~~~~~~
Rainbow sky
Promises kept;
Surreal feeling
~~~~~~~~~
Leon Enriquez
04 October 2016
Singapore
Broken Vows©2017
Written by
Lewis, Y.K
My beloved, I vowed this promise to love, to honor and obey until death do us part. It was truly all my pleasure to serve you in all my duties. To walk by your side, to lay in your bed, and to bear your children to make your house a home.
To work outside and inside your home to earn my worth in your eyes. To be the housekeeper, bookkeeper, childcare provider, taxi, personal assistant, cook, animal groomer, activity coordinator, nurse, and but not least your lover.
My desire was to give you more of me and in my giving of more, I found it was too much to bear.
I am all consuming in every area of our relationship, I want, what I want, when I want it and without regard to your schedule. I was your lamb that sacrificed herself without fault of your stewardship always asking you to be mindful of the presents that were given unto you.
You hit, you lied, you schemed, you stole, you cheated, you accused, you pushed, you spoke sickness into our home, you spoke death into our family, you spoke debt into our finances, and yet there was no love.
I feared it was all my actions that caused you to treat me this way. Yet, I stayed. I stayed, but the cost of the picture presented to the public was more than I could bear.
The example of saying, “Do as I say, and not as I do.” Won’t do when you’re the example. I sought counsel for guidance to my not so unique circumstances, truth is I didn’t break my vows they were broken with the first strike, I had received from my beloved’s hands
Cosmopolitan Magazine!
The bible of my youth
How to be a ‘modern girl’
In this brave new modern world
Pages of ‘recipes’ for how to live my life
How to be a bright young thing
And for later,
How it would be when I became a wife
Because you see
According to ‘Cosmo’
It wasn’t going to be
Just how it had always been
For generations of women from the North
It promised a new dawn
Where men would be
Sensitive to emotions
Active in childcare
Attentive around the home
They wouldn’t just come in
Flop in front of the TV
Expecting everything to be done
‘Cosmo’ promised me a modern kind of man
Believing it (every word)
To be true
I proudly showed my Nan
And declared!
Nan! This is what husbands are going to be like
When I have one!
Nan just sighed
Shook her head and said
“Not round here they’re not!”
And though it seems like a
long lost dream,
Know that we’ve got your back
This insanity won’t last forever
It’s bound to fade away fast
Doctors, nurses and
Childcare workers
Police and Firemen
Pilots, Preists and Rabbis
Teachers, Family and Friends
We all rely on you
When you do what you do
You do what you can
For the old and the young
The rich and the poor
We send all our love and little bit more
Here’s hoping this all will
ring true
For tomorrow and all the days yet to come
We all know what to do
I would move mountains for all the working mothers:
To untangle our communities and have someone see their true colors.
To stop mothers from carrying the brunt of communal dysfunction,
To guide a little cultural deconstruction,
To redirect the debilitating parental judgment,
To provide more support from the government,
To end the overstimulated etiquettes that have always been known,
To deconstruct those parenting standards we’ve outgrown,
To assist with the impossible parenting choices,
To hear these working mothers' voices.
To help homes stay financially viable,
To create childcare that is reliable,
To become a work-life balance advocate,
To build postpartum support that's adequate,
To support the countless and endless asks,
To end the pressure of the myriad of household tasks.
To stop being accustomed to survival mode.
It's time to start enjoying the motherly road,
Because the weight of being someone’s everything is as heavy as it is light,
Moving Mountains for them seems right.
4 years of happiness
Not really bliss
But something between
I had friends
Church friends
School friends
I lead a youth group
People showed up
It was fun
Church coffee shop
Everybody loved us
Even the grumps
Childcare
I met young parents
I watched their kids
Hope and expectation
I was meeting my goals
I was living
Groups at the library
For young folk like me
Everybody was hopeful
It's no wonder so many
Remember so fondly
The years of positivity
When people had hope instead of expectations
Joy at the smaller accomplishments
And forgiveness for your failures
I find myself getting up slowly off the floor. My head dizzy and I am
feeling sick to my stomach, from them injecting me with their chemicals once
more. My hands look red, swollen and feeling sore. For pounding upon my
locked bedroom door. It has been two years now sense I have become a ward of
the state. Now it’s up to the courts to determine my fate…
I was placed in this program for what I have done. The courts had said was really
bad. In the ways I was treating both my mom and my step dad. It was my step
dad who treated me the wrong every day. When it came time for me to talk, no
one there to listen to the words I needed to say. Something in witch I feel so sad,
a real childhood, something I feel I never had. My emotions I must keep deep
down inside. At this time it feels like parts of me have already died.
Crying was something that could never be done, I find myself drowning my
sorrow in the early morning sun.
Now these chemicals are beginning to flow. Not one single emotion I can ever
show. People wonder why I move and talk so slow. In the morning when I rise,
the gift of life is dimming quickly in my eyes. I was ordered to this childcare
center, being handcuffed I was forced to enter. When I entered that dark sad day.
A thought accrued to me. For it seems that my childhood was forever taken away.
Now I stop to debate, this is what happens when you become a child of the state.
For those
Who dream?