Poems

Curse The Animals!

A somewhat silly set of limericks in honour of Harry Radcliffe and my time in Anarchapulco.

Text within this block will maintain its original spacing when publishedHe really didn’t think it through
to see government’s but a zoo.
Screeching apes,
those jackanapes,
Yet he says I’m talking bull poo.

I tried to warn they’d run amok,
but he just looked at me dumb-struck.
Their wealthy backers
sounding quackers,
all that he could say was “duck!”

It really was a painful slog
to make some senseful dialogue.
He whined like swine
when truth did shine
and cried out like a female dog.

Until, at last, he could confront
the predators who prey and hunt.
Feelings straining,
now complaining,
“Should’ve told me earlier, runt!”

Curse The Animals ~ A Poem by Tom Shaw

They say that laughter is the best medicine - which makes it fitting that it was a tweet by Doc Malik that put me on to Harry Radcliffe and his Silly poems. The joy I’ve had in reading and engaging with his increasingly ridiculous prose inspired me to write something silly of my own for a change, and I had great fun going through the process of creating this piece and reflecting on the public discourse on many sociopolitical issues over the past few years - and the reactions of some of those going through their own “awakening” process.

In their day, court jesters were revered for their powers in truth-telling, wielding the ability to make a mockery of the highest levels of nobility where no others were able to. It is a tradition that continues in modern day comics and their ability to speak truth to the corruption at the highest levels of society, delivered in a manner that should be tolerated and celebrated. I say “should” be tolerated - it’s perhaps not surprising that comedy is so strongly targeted by cancel culture, especially when comedians speak to a truth that is counter to prevailing narratives.

Comedy has a unique ability of both lifting people to joy and communicating truth simultaneously, and I’ve been especially impressed at the likes of Alistair Williams and his ability to do this over the course of the past few years. Comedy, including satire, can help people bond in a way many other art forms struggle to, providing a vehicle to release the tension of a room with. And, it is truly an art, requiring equal part magician and equal part fool to be channelled during its creation and delivery.

Silly poems primed me to channel some of that sense of fun, and then my time in Anarchapulco has truly cemented the value of fun as a means of releasing tension. I had so many experiences there that have pushed my understanding of my own self in ways that I can look back on with so much joy and gratitude; I can and do acknowledge how blessed I am to have come through the lower moments of my life to be here now. With that, I’ve also come to appreciate how “fun” does not mean “reckless” - there is nothing fun about off-kilter jokes when somebody is going through a struggle and needs space to be held. The fun comes from working with that process, holding space for those people as the fires within them burn through, as then we get to experience the fun of the release and looking-back at the end.

I believe poetry can do that too. There is a place for serious poetry, and there is a place for silly poetry too. To me, both are routes to fun, both in reading or hearing them and in writing them.

Here’s to many more poems that lead to a sense of fun, however that journey may look.

With gratitude,

Tom