The sun rises slow, casting light so sweet,
In the Kasi, where the streets meet.
Wheelbarrows roll with greens so fresh,
Hustlers hustle, working to impress.
On the corners, voices rise and fall,
“Tomatoes! Spinach! Come buy it all!”
The clink of coins, the sound of trade,
As Saturday's tiredness starts to fade.
Grandmothers with prayer beads in hand,
Walking slowly, their hearts so grand.
Hand in hand with little ones near,
Their laughter echoes, pure and clear.
The scent of stew fills the air,
Pots bubbling, food everywhere.
Mothers and daughters, side by side,
Stirring the pot with love and pride.
Some are at home, busy and bright,
Cooking up dishes to end the night.
And others gather, all smiles and grace,
Sunday in Kasi, a familiar place.
Here, the rhythm of life never rests,
A dance of hard work, faith, and the best.
In wheelbarrows, in kitchens, in church—
Sunday in the Kasi, where love doesn’t search.
It’s not in riches or fame we find,
But in shared moments, hearts intertwined.
Where vegetables are sold and prayers rise,
Sunday in the Kasi, under open skies.
Life
and death
are not two~
light and shadow
autumn leaves
ocean waves
wheelbarrows
and chickens~
emptiness
full of two~~
Crossing the street in a motorized wheelbarrow.
Drops of ice cream on the road that is narrow.
Someone says I’m blocking the street.
While I’m eating my cold treat.
I found a nice spot in the shade.
At a bus stop that doesn’t allow wheelbarrows, I’m afraid.
While I innocently sway.
Like a bale of hay.
They think I should buy a ticket.
Maybe they should pay for it!
They say the bus is more normal.
But my wheelbarrow is never too full.
My invention is good enough for dirt and cement.
It’s also good enough for a person, I bet!
The passengers step around me in anger.
I’m enjoying the shade a little longer.
When my relaxation is through-
Why not stop at a drive thru?
Whether they laugh or yell,
I will take my burger done well.
I might get a tomato thrown at me today…
But it’s better than paying for a car I say!
My Granddad can’t stay on the straight and narrow
Robs garden centres with his bow and arrow,
Police knew his scheming
So now he is screaming
Speeding downhill in a plastic wheelbarrow
As gramps in his wheelbarrow got lots of LOLs
The river impeded his getaway goals
When used as a boat
It just wouldn’t float
Since when did those wheelbarrows have drainage holes
He dragged out the barrow as fast as he could
Expecting somehow it could do him some good
He thought it made sense
To ask Fred the Fence
“Who launders wheelbarrows in this neighbourhood?”
He sold the wheelbarrow and tried to go straight
Then Grandad found weeds all round his garden gate
“Oh for goodness sake,
I need a new rake.”
Went shopping at ten ’cause the store closed at eight
He snuck through a window by breaking the pane
And made his way through to the garden tools lane
The alarm’s manic blast
Brought police really fast
He grabbed a wheelbarrow and set off again
Clumsy Cat was terrified of wheels
Being around them reminded her of heels
She would rather be chased by brooms or eels
Both had crushed some of her favorite kibble meals
What about wheelbarrows? Another cat said.
I’d rather be caught and thrown on my head!
Could I please show you something new instead?
It was her favorite Uncle Cat Muffin McEd.
He showed her a wheelbarrow that was a sight.
It had delicate flowers all big and bright.
Most of them exuded an aura of beautiful light.
Clumsy Cat was surprised, for it was a delight!
I've hugged the cold rock and walked with rubber legs.
Been planted like a flower, watching the bees do their thing.
The Ozian Wizards dual with silver words and pencil sized swords.
For a few dead presidents you can buy all the wheelbarrows you want.
The Spirit Kings sell their prayers for the simple price of Mahatten.
Monkey Bikers wear leather chaps and race their souped up rides.
Platinum snowflakes fall from heaven, where the streets shine.
Haloed Angels fly in formation, while muzak plays beetoven.
I asked God if He was real, only true believers heard his reply.
wheelbarrows of grief
chip away, shred scars, spread wide
nurture renewal
STEALING
There once was a lady named Clara
Who daily rolled a wheelbarrow
It was always filled with hay
Police searched it one day
Found out she was stealing wheelbarrows
19 August 2018
Like a drop of the rainbow
A mother arches herself over her stricken child,
A man arches himself over his prostrate wife,
And a stranger arches himself over another.
Rainbows in a hailstorm, they all are,
Bringing out their best colors
To hold back the hail of bullets
That but for them would rip another:
The killer sought to see red
Yet from heroes and heroines alike
Came the rainbow through his gun sight.
Wheezing past the bullets
Were ambulances and wheelbarrows,
Taxis and foot angels--
All in search of succor for the wounded, the dying...
Nowhere, though, did I see the gun laws:
While the rainbow flew at half mast,
They remained asleep and aloof.
Those are wheelbarrows
Carrying bony flesh
Towards the grave
Waking up in the morning,
I saw the sun angry with me.
Leaves bent low to slap me
Cows that ate little mooed,
asking me for more that day
In wheelbarrows wind placed
rubbish heap in the courtyard;
And the phone rang loudly,
landlord wanted rent arrears
As I moved, stone hit my toe
“Another bad day for me!”
I sat at the veranda thinking;
“And those happen as routine!
What I did not know is;
Why are both human beings
and nature against me,
every morning, each day?”
I soliloquized in distress.
ECO FRIENDLY VEHICLES
There are problems with eco-friendly - among others
It is friendly for us but not for our brothers.
A rich man often secretly stands on a beggar -
Gasohol is often mixed from gasoline and cane sugar:
Great for conserving oil but oh-oh the strain
On forests of Brazil, cleared to grow sugar cane.
Solar panels on car-roof soak up sun : no pollution – nothing finer
But the panels are made in smoke-belching factories in China.
Long-life rechargeable batteries for a non-sunny day?
You guessed it, made in sweat-shops in Bangladesh by children who don’t play,
(To keep the cost low and affordable for us)
Why not sell the eco-car and take the eco-bus?
I guess the only really eco-friendly vehicles might be
Wooden wheelbarrows made from trees which died naturally;
Horse-drawn carts, with fertilizer-producing horsepower;
Hot-air balloons with sun-heat (as long as there’s no shower);
And olden-days sailing ships, although England’s forests green
Disappeared to make sure that the olden seas were pristine.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Written for Robb A. Kopp's Contest "Eco-friendly Vehicles".
Apples.. beetles.. caterpillars..
daisies everywhere..
fertile ground.. hollyhocks..
Ivy jumbled kegs..
leafy mint.. nematodes..
oregano..peas..
quiet rest sunsets.. tomatoes under vines..
wheelbarrows.. xanadu yearning zeal!
I stood and watched them
One by one by one
Working ever so lovingly
Until all the work was done
There were parents and adults
Kids of all ages too
All this was for
In memory of you-know-who
They were washing headstones
Using shaving cream, to clean
There were so many of them
And even more in between
Others were raking leaves
Some were cutting brush
There were people everywhere
But, no one was in a rush
Some were planting flowers
Together in several rows
There were wheelbarrows
Tractors and even track hoes
They were laying bricks
And also walking about
But, the hardest thing was
Brennan, we were without
He wasn't there in person
He listened to God's call
His Eagle Scout project completed
In spirit, he saw it all
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