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Simon Rogerson Poem
He stood shivering in the biting cold
Shreds of dirty, flimsy clothes clung to his frame
All around his fellow skeletons huddled
Waiting for the inevitable walk to that sinister place
His wait had been longer than most
He had been subjected to terrible cruelty
He had seen all of his friends and family go
Yet in his mind he had remained free
His physical torment seemed detached when lost in his memories
His little girl chasing her puppy in the bright sunshine
Friends and relatives around the festive table laughing, chatting, eating
Walking hand-in-hand with his beloved around the moonlight lake
But the freezing wind jolted him back to the hellish reality
He looked towards the barbed-wire fence which bounded his world
There sat on the top wire was a little bird
It sang the sweetest of tunes seemingly just for him
It looked at him as it sang with such innocence
And then with a flutter of its tiny wings
It swooped towards him, turned and glided back over the fence
It pecked at the hard earth before flying into the woods beyond
He knew it was his time
Into that building he trudged
But he had a strange sense of elation
Closing his eyes at last he was free
The morning light shone brightly
The little bird was at his side
It guided him on as they soared through the sky
With the shackles of hell cast aside freedom now prevailed
He and the little bird would never go back to that place again
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To commemorate the liberation of Auschwitz on 27 January 1945.
Copyright © Simon Rogerson | Year Posted 2020
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Simon Rogerson Poem
Act 1: Earth
Water
Droplets fall to earth
Meniscus lens on the world -
Wellspring of life born
Air
Gaseous brew forms
Invisible elixir -
A breath of fresh air
Fire
Destructive, cleansing
But giver of warmth and light –
Fire’s dual perspective
Act 2: Plant
Leaf
Spring buds burst afresh
Summer leaves decay so soon –
Death lords over all
Palm
Giant grass not tree
These swaying centurions -
Lives must co-exist
Sunflower
Massed bright sunflowers
Heads turn in obedience -
Sun sets on their lives
Act 3: Animal
Slug
Slug saw juicy leaf
Raced to eat this rare delight!
Bird swooped, slug no more
Ant
Ants march home in line
Communal desire on show -
Nature's will prevails
Butterfly
Winged beauty flutters
Abstract painting on her back -
Looks often deceive
Act 4: Man
Crescent
Curvaceous glory
The home of wealthy leisure -
Rich built upon poor
Gaudi
Parabolic waves
Acknowledge natural forms -
Colour outlaws grey
Dubrovnik
Sun shines on pan tiles
The town's uniform new shell -
War scars fade slowly
Act 5: Machine – the final chapter
Computer
Bits, bytes, ones, zeros
So Charles and Ada conceive -
IT’s Pandora’s box
Robot
Man and beast replaced
Same task over and over -
Objective carnage
AI
Boolean bible
Artificial ignorance -
Logical ending
Postscript: Evolutionary finale
Obliteration
Human destruction of earth -
Annihilation
Poetry Soup Featured Poem: August 16, 2020
Copyright © Simon Rogerson | Year Posted 2019
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Simon Rogerson Poem
When we work with wisdom we will work world wonders!
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15 May 2022
First Place in WORK PERSPECTIVE MONOKU
Sponsor: Beata Agustin
Copyright © Simon Rogerson | Year Posted 2022
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Simon Rogerson Poem
A few notes set a rhythm
The foxtrot beckons
Across the crowded room they smile
Nat's melodic tone frames the dance
Towards each other they move
And then they are one
Bodies locked in a dance embrace
The romantic shades of four-four time
Float across the meadows of their hearts
Effortlessly they glide across the floor
Feather step, reverse turn, natural weave
Flowing movements are but second nature
Others gaze on in wonder
As every elegant step unfolds
One beautiful, musical love story
Music fades, but their light shines brightly
They look, they laugh, they kiss
Then arm-in-arm they dance into the future
Living life to their stardust melody
Copyright © Simon Rogerson | Year Posted 2024
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Simon Rogerson Poem
Dark clouds part
Spring sun warms land
Sleepy tree opens wardrobe
Fresh green cloak covers naked frame
Squirrel gymnastics performed against vibrant backdrop
Ignored by blackbirds busy building
Summer arrives
Leaf’s heyday
Flutters in warm breeze
Veins pump life into dainty form
Nature’s simplistic beauty
Too soon chill spreads across land
Winds gust challenging life
Leaf resists but colour changes
Green tinged with brown
Tree draws inward
Leaf’s lifeblood turned off
Brown vista prevails
Then airborne in autumn sky
Dark clouds draw in
Bleak winter arrives
Grounded, shrivelled, still
Life leaves leaf
Copyright © Simon Rogerson | Year Posted 2025
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Simon Rogerson Poem
They stood in the bright Andalucian sunlight
The noble sunflowers with stance upright
Massed yellow ranks portray solidarity
Faces and heights display uniformity
Unquestioning loyalty to the hot sun
First the seeds are sown and their hearts are won
Swaying in the breeze their gaze never falters
As their master’s arc continually alters
Brown, yellow or purple faces can be
And a bright yellow halo surrounds all three
Broad coarse-toothed leaves on spiral stems lie
These giant plants stand fifteen feet high
Beneath their beauty lies valuable treasure
Leaves, seeds and oil to be used at our pleasure
Dried seeds are eaten or ground to make bread
Oilcake to stock and poultry are fed
As blazing sun sets on hot, summer days
Sunflowers bow their heads through lack of sun rays
But with summer over they wither and die
Ready for use as food supply
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Published in Ensalada Mixta: Observations and Inspirations
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"Little can compare with the dazzling yellow of fields of sunflowers in the Spanish sunshine. However, it is a short-lived spectacle and soon decay takes hold. It is a story about nature’s way. It is also a story which can happen to the people of a country – hope, oppression and destruction. The difference is that there is no choice in nature but there is a choice for people."
2nd place in Have You Published. Sponsored by Line Gauthier November 2020
Copyright © Simon Rogerson | Year Posted 2020
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Simon Rogerson Poem
Reign of terror plays out
Endless nights as victims shout
So many good ones vanish
People must hide their anguish
Equality is a forbidden word
Community's voice tries to be heard
Together they stand and die
Say a little prayer - then cry
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In memory of Aretha Franklin, singer, songwriter, actress, pianist, and civil rights activist, who died 16 August 2018.
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Poetry Soup Featured Poem: November 1, 2020. In 2022, it was published in PS: It's Still Poetry.
Copyright © Simon Rogerson | Year Posted 2020
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Simon Rogerson Poem
They all come in
There’s a family din
But the cat sat on the mat
Tea time done
They have some fun
But the cat sat on the mat
It’s early evening
Kids are screaming
But the cat sat on the mat
Eight at night
Kids out of sight
But the cat sat on the mat
News at Ten
For Kate and Ben
But the cat sat on the mat
A cold winter’s night
Folk tucked up tight
But the cat sat on the mat
Three in the morning
The house is snoring
But the cat sat on the mat
Mice scurry past
Could it be their last?
But the cat sat on the mat
Seven in the morning
Milk is pouring
But the cat sat on the mat
What is wrong with this cat?
Oh - it’s dead!
~~~
One of my early poems written in September 2012
1st place
The Throwback Challenge Poetry Contest
Sponsored by: Natasha L Scragg
Copyright © Simon Rogerson | Year Posted 2022
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Simon Rogerson Poem
Digital age, digital technology, digital people
Digital adds to life
Digital subtracts from life
But why?
Because:
People make things
People change things
People use things
People abuse things
So:
Digital education for everyone
Then:
Digital technology for everyone
Young and old, rich and poor, here and there
Reboot society
Reboot life
Reboot digital!
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Written 2 February 2021
This is a poetical version of
Rebooting ethics education in the digital age
https://doi.org/10.20935/AL146
It demonstrates Poetical potentials: the value of poems in social impact education which can be found at
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3381025
Both articles are written by Simon Rogerson
Poetry Soup Featured Poem: December 19, 2021
Copyright © Simon Rogerson | Year Posted 2021
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Simon Rogerson Poem
Computer
Bits, bytes, ones, zeros
So Charles and Ada conceive -
IT’s Pandora’s box
Robot
Man and beast replaced
Same task over and over -
Objective carnage
AI
Boolean bible
Artificial ignorance -
Logical ending
Evolutionary finale – Armageddon!
This Haiku set follows on from the Evolutionary Sequel haikus. It appeared in Rogerson, S., 2020. Poetical potentials: the value of poems in social impact education. ACM Inroads, 11(1), pp.30-32. doi.org/10.1145/3381025. In 2022, it was published in PS: It's Still Poetry
Copyright © Simon Rogerson | Year Posted 2019
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