CONTAINERS AND CONTENTS

Was formerly FURTHER SILENT DIALOGUE. A poem about communication (or lack of it) with my sons when they were in their teenage years.

You stand before me like a wall
Awaiting the character of graffiti
You see me as some frozen myth
Within the solid ice of past
You see no movement
Such short and shallow vision
I am already you and more
Listen to my years
Read the maps of my scars
Why insist on fresh blood of your own?

You are not me
Nor am I less
And you don't know anymore
It's different now
You're out of touch

Have new emotions been discovered?
New hungers?
New desires?
New hatreds?
New loves?

Different containers
Same emotions

                      By Phil Roberts

Reviews

[Hopkirk]

I'm not a poet and I don't explore it often so I'm no authority. I read the ten poems and enjoyed them all. Normally poetry is full of over stressed vocabulary but yours flowed well. This one however was the stand out amongst those I read and deserves a place in a collection. Though not linked it reminded me of John Proctor's words, "How can I teach my sons to walk like men in the world?". Fatherhood can be tough I imagine.

[Phil Roberts]

Thank you for your kind words. I'm glad of the encouragement :) And as for being a father, I now watch my sons have the same problems with their teenage sons. Life's cycle rolls on.