> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.tom-shaw.uk/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Puzzled Monkey - URL: https://www.tom-shaw.uk/puzzled-monkey/ - Published: 2025-07-14T16:01:12.000Z - Updated: 2025-07-14T16:01:12.000Z - Description: A Kyrielle - Author: Tom Shaw - Tags: Poems, #substack, #substack-type-newsletter, #substack-access-everyone, #Import 2026-10-24 12:50 Text within this block will maintain its original spacing when publishedI have bananas. Him? A vape. He is a human – I’m an ape. I look, but something is amiss... You say I evolve into this?! Cumbersome body drooping low, some black glass won't let his eyes go. His lady blows her glass a kiss... I’m meant to evolve into this?! His fruit comes out a plastic bag that he discards just like a fag. You’ve got to be taking the piss to think I evolve into this! He has no tribe to call his own and follows orders from a throne. Leave me to have my primate bliss– I’m not “evolving” into this! ###### Puzzled Monkey - A Kyrielle by Tom Shaw --- [Subscribe now](#/portal/signup) --- Things have been a little quieter for me on the poetry front of late - I’ve been taking on a lot of non-writing work to resolve some immediate financial challenges, and this has taken me much further away from engaging with my readers and poetry generally than I would like. You could say I certainly feel like a “puzzled monkey”, trying to work out how I can make my writings the main focus of my life, while also trying to prioritise live interactions with others - all in a manner that can keep me fed, with a roof over my head and spend time with the people closest to me in my personal life. I’m still searching for the answer. As for this poem, I first had the idea while sat looking at a [monkey puzzle tree](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Araucaria%5Faraucana?ref=tom-shaw.uk), which ultimately lent its name to the title of this poem. The common name for *Araucaria araucana* derives from a comment made by English barrister Charles Austen, who remarked: “It would be a puzzle for a monkey to climb that.” Working with this idea, an interest in exploring different poetic forms and wanting to channel some more [Silly poems](https://open.substack.com/users/3801815) energy, this ended up being the result of that exploration. ![a small pine tree in a blue pot](https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1648052725936-57947a5ee980?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wzMDAzMzh8MHwxfHNlYXJjaHw1fHxtb25rZXklMjBwdXp6bGV8ZW58MHx8fHwxNzQ2ODE0NjY3fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080) It wasn’t quite finished in time to be included in my last book, ***Go Forth, Butterfly!*** If it were, it likely would have made the cut. As such, consider this piece as something of a “bonus track” that you might find at the end of an album. [Albums That Changed My LifeThere’s a quote from English writer Walter Pater that says the following:![](https://cdn.mymidnight.blog/a14ac55a4f27472c5d894ec1c3c743d2/substack-post-media-s3-amazonaws-com/public/images/10bb0009-5e84-44ee-a718-12b501f3eb7a_1280x1280.png)Tom ShawTom Shaw![](https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1496293455970-f8581aae0e3b?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wzMDAzMzh8MHwxfHNlYXJjaHwxN3x8cmVjb3JkfGVufDB8fHx8MTcxOTUwODMyNHww&ixlib=rb-4.0.3&q=80&w=1080)](https://www.tom-shaw.uk/albums-that-changed-my-life/) Thank you for taking the time to read this piece. Please consider picking up [a copy of my latest book](https://tom-shaw.uk/product/go-forth-butterfly/?ref=tom-shaw.uk) or [leaving a one-time donation](https://tom-shaw.uk/product/one-time-donation-or-tip/?ref=tom-shaw.uk) to help support my work. I look forward to sharing more with you soon. With gratitude, Tom --- ![](https://cdn.mymidnight.blog/a14ac55a4f27472c5d894ec1c3c743d2/substack-post-media-s3-amazonaws-com/public/images/04f193f5-cd6e-4fb5-816f-9fb0b15f8bab_750x990.png) [Subscribe now](#/portal/signup) [Leave a tip](https://tom-shaw.uk/product/one-time-donation-or-tip/?ref=tom-shaw.uk) --- ## More Like This [Curse The Animals!![](https://cdn.mymidnight.blog/a14ac55a4f27472c5d894ec1c3c743d2/substack-post-media-s3-amazonaws-com/public/images/10bb0009-5e84-44ee-a718-12b501f3eb7a_1280x1280.png)Tom ShawTom Shaw![](https://cdn.mymidnight.blog/a14ac55a4f27472c5d894ec1c3c743d2/substack-post-media-s3-amazonaws-com/public/images/26e45c7a-b5a5-4ae9-8a0c-0175606c736c_1024x608.jpg)](https://www.tom-shaw.uk/curse-the-animals/) [Lament of a Dying Dragonfly![](https://cdn.mymidnight.blog/a14ac55a4f27472c5d894ec1c3c743d2/substack-post-media-s3-amazonaws-com/public/images/10bb0009-5e84-44ee-a718-12b501f3eb7a_1280x1280.png)Tom ShawTom Shaw![](https://cdn.mymidnight.blog/a14ac55a4f27472c5d894ec1c3c743d2/substack-post-media-s3-amazonaws-com/public/images/1bb1171b-b1fc-440e-8151-50a97850448a_1920x1080.jpg)](https://www.tom-shaw.uk/lament-of-a-dying-dragonfly/) [The Badger's PathSavaging its way with gnarling shrieks, the badgering is upon the woods once more. 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