The Ballad of Dangerous Trends

One thing that's hard to escape from

Is social media trends.

People encounter them daily

And then share the posts with their friends.

 

The false information spreads quickly.

The internet boosts it along.

Many susceptible victims

Don't care if the info is wrong.

 

Quacks and unscrupulous people

Everywhere are to be found

Constantly looking for someone

With whom they can find common ground.

 

If you're in the market for snake oil

To grow some hair on your head,

You would be much better off

If you saved your money instead.

 

After the outbreak of COVID

From out of the woodwork we saw

Wackos appear with their cure-alls.

We could see flaw after flaw.

 

You can find charlatans selling

Cures for cancer and shirk

Any responsible notion,

For all those quick fixes don't work.

 

A new trend is spreading on TikTok:

Try drinking borax, they say.

Sprinkle a tad in your water;

Your joint pain will then go away!

 

Borax, a household cleaner,

Has other uses, you see.

Ingest it and you could have rashes

And seizures. No, that's not for me!

 

Dangerous health fads are out there.

Listen to experts who know

How to avoid falling victim

To someone who causes great woe.

 

Whatever you do, don't fall victim

To those who can cause you great woe.

-by Bob B (7-22-23)

Hits and Misses

You cannot always have hits in life;

There have to be some misses.

Sometimes you'll hear words of praise;

Sometimes you'll hear hisses.

 

Artists don't always aim to produce

Works to please the masses.

Those who try will find themselves

Falling flat on their asses.

 

The point is this: create…create!

Express what comes from the heart.

Do your best with each endeavor

Though folks might tear it apart.

 

Enjoy the creative process, for it

Can truly be your friend.

Results are fine, but the process itself

Is more than a means to an end.

 

Now, IF you have nothing but flops,

That might be a sign

That you should seek a different form

Of expression in order to shine.

 

Find what works for you and allow

Creative juices to flow.

If people expect you to be who you aren't,

Tell them, “Thank you, but no.”

-by Bob B (7-20-23)

Poor Trumpy!

Trump's cases are piling up.

In Florida, it's classified docs.

Jumping from ONE excuse to another,

He acts as though he's Goldilocks!

 

Falsifying business records:

Another accusation he faces.

But no matter what he does,

He always stays in supporters' good graces.

 

There's also the case in Georgia, where

It's interference in an election.

Then there's a possible D.C. case:

Involvement in an insurrection.

 

(Chorus)

Poor Trumpy!

Hear him moan.

All he has to count on is his telephone.

Always in a pickle but the fault's his own.

Poor Trumpy!

 

A case of sexual abuse

Is one that he has already lost.

It's incredible when you consider

All the lines that man has crossed.

 

Trump denies all charges, of course,

And yells, "Witch hunt!" and "Weaponization!"

But making him accountable,

Though bad for him, is good for the nation.

 

(Chorus)

Poor Trumpy!

Hear him moan.

All he has to count on is his telephone.

Always in a pickle but the fault's his own.

Poor Trumpy!

-by Bob B (7-19-23)

The Father*

In a small village lived a man

Who no longer had a wife.

The only son that he had was now

The pride and joy of his life.`

 

While the man was away one day,

Some plunderers came into town.

They ransacked the homes, kidnapped the boy,

And burned the houses down.

 

When the man arrived back home,

He found among the rubble

A charred body. Assuming it was

His son's, he took the trouble

 

To have the body cremated, and then

He put the remains of the lad

Into a bag that he carried with him

Wherever he went. Poor dad!

 

After the man had rebuilt his house

With a memorial dome,

The son escaped from the plunderers

And found his way back home.

 

Hearing a knock on the door, the father

Wondered, "Who could it be?"

The son continued knocking and said,

"Father, it is me!"

 

"Go away!" the father said.

"Leave me in peace!" he cried.

"I won't open the door to an

Imposter. My son died!"

 

Frantically, the son continued

To pound upon the door.

He finally walked away in sadness.

Ah, the grief they bore!

 

The years passed by. The son would wonder

Every now and then,

"Should I return?" but sadly he

Never went back again.

 

When people are so attached to false

Ideas that they embrace,

They hide from the truth, even if

It stares them in the face.

-by Bob B (7-14-23)

*An old Buddhist parable

The Poisoned Arrow

A curious monk asked the Buddha some questions:

"Is the world finite or not?

What happens to people after we die?

Your answers to these will help me a lot."

 

The wise and compassionate Buddha, who

Always kept on the straight and narrow,

Smiled at the monk and replied, "Suppose

A man is hit by a poisoned arrow.

 

"He tells the surgeon, 'Before you remove

The arrow, I REALLY have to know

Who the person is who shot it

And if he is a beginner or pro.

 

'How old is he? Is he a noble

Warrior or merely a simple man?

From what family does he come?

Is he dark, light, or tan?

 

'Did he use a longbow, or did

He use a crossbow? One more thing:

I want to know what kind of material

The person used to make the string.

 

'Ah, the feathers! I don't think

By asking this I am being absurd,

But since arrows have feathers, tell me

Where they came from. From WHAT kind of bird?'

 

"Before anyone could answer these questions,

The man who had been hit would be dead.

He should have said to the surgeon, 'Please,

Remove the poisoned arrow!' instead.

 

"You see, resorting to useless questions

And metaphysical speculation

Will not end human suffering

Or help you experience realization.

 

"Life is short; don't waste time.

What is essential should be your focus.

You'll be more at peace if you

Eschew irrelevant hocus pocus."

-by Bob B (7-9-23)

More Important?

"There are more important things than living,"

Said Dan Patrick° back in 2020.

His words, of course, were feelingless and shocking,

But people who agree with him are plenty.

 

Although Patrick's words were focused on

COVID at the time, it is clear

That folks out there will use his argument

To justify the guns that they hold dear.

 

We can see that certain politicians

And their supporters clearly are the ones

Who've made the choice that life is less important

Than having their huge arsenal of guns.

 

An epidemic--one of violence--

Pervades this country. Watch the killings surge.

The Second Amendment, misinterpreted,

Contributes in a big way to the scourge.

 

Doubtless there are certain regulations

That would likely help protect us all,

But people who oppose our taking action

Fight such regulations with a squall.

 

Our thoughts or prayers will NOT revive the dead.

If people are afraid of making waves,

And if the situation stays the same,

We'll be putting flowers on more graves.

 

We MUST attempt to end the senseless shootings.

People must stand up and make demands.

Those who scoff at intervention have

The blood of many victims on their hands.

-by Bob B (7-6-23)

°Texas Lt. Governor

What a Universe!

This is a violent universe.

Galaxies are colliding.

A big black hole could gobble us up.

From some things there's no hiding.

 

A meteor could crash into Earth.

It wouldn't just make a din;

The impact and the after-effects

Could surely do us in.

 

A huge volcano could erupt.

What would be in store?

Much of life could become extinct.

It's happened on Earth before.

 

Ultimately, a red giant

Will be the fate of our sun,

And we will all be vaporized.

That doesn't sound like fun.

 

If the universe collapses

Upon itself, well, then

Maybe another big bang would

Happen all over again.

 

Or if it keeps expanding, we

Would take a different route.

Eventually, everything

Would just fizzle out.

 

Are there multiple universes?

Are we not alone?

Are they as violent as ours?

So much is unknown.

 

In the meantime, I'll enjoy

The sun's gorgeous display,

And watch it rise and set and hope

To see another day.

-by Bob B (7-3-23)