Three Beggars
I beg your pardon,I'm not a racist,
Never have been,
Never will be,
And I don't spoil
The planet,
Never have done,
Never will do,
And I'm not materialistic,
Never had anything,
Never will have.
I beg to differ,
You do have an
Interest in exotic
Peoples, it's true,
I've seen your
Discovery and
National Geographic
TV channels and books,
But last year you
Objected to a mosque
Being built in your area,
And when you were younger
You pretended to be ill
So that you wouldn't have to
Go to the cinema with your
Sister and her new friend
From work, a beautiful nurse
From old Ceylon.
And I know you claim to
Like Mother Earth, sending
£2 a month to charities
For the rescue of endangered
Species, and complaining to your MP
About the rape of rain forests
And the threat of nuclear energy,
But you were fined £60 last month
For fly-tipping broken furniture
And loads of concrete rubble.
Which brings me on to your
Apparent hirsute lifestyle,
The 'Less is More' man isn't
Quite what he seems to be;
Remember the litter fine?
I've seen your new extension
And the new kitchen and
The new fittings and fixtures.
I know, you wanted to go
Upmarket so that your friends
From the golf club and the
Horticultural society could
Come round and admire
Your modern look and
Impeccable taste: you
Said so in the email you
Sent to all 200 of your colleagues.
I beg for all my primary needs,
Food, water, an oven to cook the
Food, a well and pump to draw
The water, a room or two to live
And sleep in, a fire that keeps
Me warm at night, a few clothes
For my modesty, a few coins
For my destiny.
I beg your forgiveness.
Poetry by Christopher Fernie
Read 600 times
Written on 2017-04-29 at 12:48
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