Three Poems

By Barry Harper

Melting Ice (A Villanelle)

Arctic ice melting every day
Trump’s too slow, head buried in snow
Icebergs floating far far away

Greta Thunberg enters the fray
Dire warning of global warming
Arctic ice melting every day

Carbon clouds rain shades of grey
Keep coal and oil deep in the soil
Icebergs floating far far away

Deforestation scars our stay
Polar bears fate already sealed
Arctic ice melting every day

Chemical insecticide spray
Fossil fuel mass, greenhouse gas
Icebergs floating far far away

We must act soon before we pay
‘Covid-19,’ nature’s chilling reply
Arctic ice melting every day
Icebergs floating far far away

Not Ready For That (Haiku)

Covid and lockdown
Life changed beyond all belief
I wasn’t ready

Praise for our hero’s
NHS no PPE
They were unprepared

Hot Easter weather
Scorching sun unblemished skies
Caught us by surprise

Flaccid from heatstroke
Sunburn and dehydration
We just weren’t prepared!

Lockdown

Covid nineteen self-isolation
Lives disrupted all surreal
Daily despair no green shoots there
Not seeing friends feels unreal

Widespread virulent queuing but
No sanitisers or toilet roll
Banging saucepans hero’s PPE
We’re only allowed to shop and stroll

Cornflower skies herald Easter
Scent of jasmine mowing jaded lawn
Larks singing no aircraft pollution
Chance to witness the purple dawn

Until the good days arrive
This is the best reason to survive

I have written all three of these during the COVID-19 lockdown of 2020, they are a villanelle called ‘Melting Ice.’ Haiku’s called, ‘Not Ready for That’, and a sonnet called ‘Lockdown’. I live in a village called Westwood, near Nottingham.  I found it very therapeutic to write poetry during the lockdown period.  They all capture my thoughts and observations during this stressful period.