I’m Not Quite Ready To Say Goodbye

It’s Not Easy To Say Goodbye.

I wanted you for life
You and me in the wind
I never thought there would come a time
That our story would end.
It’s hard to understand
But I guess I’ll have to try
It’s not easy to say goodbye.

For all the joy we shared
All that time we had to spend.
Now if I had one wish
I’d want forever back again
To look into your eyes
And hold you when you cry
It’s not easy to say goodbye.

I can remember all those great times we had
There were so many memories,
Some good some bad
Yes and through it all
Those memories will last forever.

There’s peace in where you are
May be all I need to know
And if I listen to my heart
I’ll hear your laughter once more
And so I have to say
I’m just glad you came my way.

My Life, So Far.

A week in Moorfields Hospital when I was nine
An operation to tighten the muscles in my right eye
A great surprise waiting when I arrived home
Our first television set, my brothers and I were flying high.

Sixty years-ago, just twelve years-old, a paperboy I was
Fifteen shillings for seven days a week
Ten bob for Monday to Saturday, five bob for a very tough Sunday
The job was tough, and the pay was a bit of a cheek.

Nineteen-Sixty-Five, school came to an end
My first job, five quid a week, less tax, of course
Thirty bob for mum, because she deserved it, and I thought it fair.
The Downs Adult Night School, twice a week
GCE O-levels maths and English, certificates are handy to keep.

Croydon Technical College, one night a week
On my moped, across Mitcham Common I sped
Electrical and Engineering Science, found it quite hard
Didn’t return for the second year, met mates in the pub instead.

Football training during the week, games at the weekend
Travelled far and wide, won more than we lost
Playing was always more important than the result
Always in the pub after, didn’t really please the boss.

First job in Mitcham, second in Four Ashes, Staffordshire
Third in New Malden, but worked mostly in Penge, SE20
Fourth, fifth and sixth all in Wimbledon
Good times and bad times, sometimes my pockets were empty.

Marriage, children, grandchildren, holidays and fun
So many different cars, makes and models, I lost count
Then before I know it, it’s two thousand and seventeen
I’m retiring, all things come to an end, there’s no doubt.

My body shows some wear and tear
But underneath I’m still the same
I can’t do everything I use to do
But at least I still remember my name.

My strength is not what it used to be
Aches and pain, I’m lucky, not too many
I find things hard that used to be easy
But I’m prescription free, not taking any.

Three score years and twelve, time has just rushed by
We never know what’s round the corner
But I’m not quite ready to say goodbye.

A Message From God.

I know I haven’t been around much lately
Because it didn’t seem like you wanted me to be.
The last time I sent down a message
You nailed my son to the cross.
So I figured I’d just leave you to it,
I gave you free will and let you be your own boss.

I apologise for all the horrors committed in my name
Although that was never what I intended
I feel I should take my share of the blame.

All the good I tried to do was corrupted
When organised religion got into full swing.
Messages I thought were quite clear
Have been taken to unusual extremes,
My teachings taken out of context
To meet the agendas of others,
Interpretations taken many different ways
And hidden meanings discovered.

Religion became a tool
For the weak to control the strong,
With all these new morals and ethics
Survival of the fittest was gone.
No longer could the biggest man
Simply take whatever he needed,
Because damnation was the price
If certain rules were not heeded.

Some of the deeds committed in my name
Just made me wonder where I went wrong.
Back at the start when I created this
The foundation seemed so strong.
All the elements were already here, long before I began
I just kind of put them all together
I didn’t really think out a long-term plan.

I made the sun an appropriate distance
And laid the stars across the sky,
So you could navigate the globe
Or simply watch the sun rise.
I covered the earth with plants and fruits
Some for sustenance and some for beauty,
I made the sun shine and the clouds rain
So their maintenance wasn’t your duty.

The birds and the animals, I love them like you,
I am sad and ashamed how you treat them so cruel.
I tried to give each creature it’s own attributes
Without making them enveloped.
I gave you all your own space to grow
And in your own way space to develop.

I didn’t know such development
Would cause rifts and jealousy,
Make you go to war against each other
And leave marks on this planet indelibly.
You see, I wasn’t really the creator
I was just the curator of nature.

It was you that invented bombs
And the fear that comes with them
And it was you that invented money
And the corrupt economic systems
And it was you that didn’t know
When to stop digging deeper
And when to stop building higher.

It was you that exhausted the resources
I carefully laid out on this earth
And it was you that saw these problems coming,
But accredited them with little worth.
It was you that used my teachings for your own personal gain
And it was you that committed violence and atrocities,
Falsely claiming they were in my name.

So I apologise for any mistakes I made
And that my words were misconstrued,
But this apology is to mother nature, because I created you.

Change Your Behaviour Now.

I am the ruling Mother Nature
It’s me that summoned Coronavirus
That now strikes fear in you.
My army is huge in numbers
Many more than you thought you knew.

I’ve allowed you all to live here
For many, many years
But you’ve abused my hospitality
And all the animals in my care.

All the creatures here with me
Have rights that you deny.
They are not for you to use as food
Or to be abused, suffer and die.

For centuries I’ve showed you
The power of my storms and diseases
But you continued killing my animal friends
And all my warnings went unheeded.

The animals are now fighting back
With a little help from me
With viruses and diseases
Storms, fires, floods and disasters
From which you will never be free.

One last chance
I may decide to give you
If you change your behaviour now.
I will try to persuade the animals to forgive you
But I’m not sure yet how.