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Seekers
Contributed by
poet_in_waiting
on
Friday, 16th June 2006 @ 10:44:07 AM in AEST
Topic:
StoryPoetry
|
Seekers
-1-
Their faces blank, gloomy.
Annoyed, sardonic smiles.
This is not fun.
Any attempt at pleasantries
is suspect
They arrive alone, in pairs, incognito.
The stigma intensely stings.
Are people staring?
Together, but not
they search,
for the meaning lost.
Meaning the forklift,
or computer screen gave them, or
so they thought
Daily routines fade away
with the status once held.
Even broom pusher or accountant
.sounds better than couch sitter,
or the father
without a job,
or the mother
in the food bank line
-2-
'I was my job, now I am no one'
Or less of a person at best
Status removed, pride remains
but quickly fades in bureaucratic quicksand
4 to 6 weeks in an eternity
4 to 6 weeks to wait
for 20 weeks of pay at
fifty-five percent of
wages earned for
20 years more or less
Unemployment is a populated prison.
Recidivism is common
Sentence varies from days to years.
Monetary shackles in place,
Escape is legal but challenging
-3-
Solitary classified
gleans hope for hundreds.
Making waffles or chocolate
beats making Kraft dinner
(the no-name kind)
every night
Email, fax or deliver
their distressing history
to the one that holds their life,
and a thousand others
in a file cabinet
for maybe 60 days, or
the cavernous waste bin for
much less time than it took too apply
-4-
'what do you mean I’m not qualified?'
17 years on a press, or
behind a desk,
behind a wheel,
dedication and exemplary effort
not what they’re looking for.
How can piece of paper mean so much?
'what do you mean I am over qualified?'
17 years with in a classroom,
behind a desk,
behind a book,
determined to better self
they want something less
How can a piece of paper mean so little?
-5-
For many the cycle of
hopefulness, banality,
despondency and back,
is trying on the spouse,
the family, the bank account,
the spirit.
Vices appear, return or
consume a being.
They fill a void and
make the gap greater.
Perhaps the habit caused the loss
the spiral down.
The hangover smell
masked with coffee and smoke
clouds the senses; even offends.
Searching becomes
an almost impossible chore.
Many are drunk, stoned, thick, or insane.
is this just a phase,
a coping mechanism
a telling lifestyle
The opportunity will never come to them
they need to discover it,
discover themselves
-6-
So many from foreign soil
searching for promise
in this land that promised so much.
Family left behind for the fortune
that never seems to come.
Biochemist security guards and
convenience store doctors.
become more common.
These determined peoples do not settle,
creating their own fortune and promise;
Perseverance pays dividends.
There are lessons to be learned here
-7-
No matter the weather, the sun
is shining when they get the call.
That paper version of their life
meant something
to someone.
Before the call optimism
was impossible,
Now the prospects seem almost overwhelming.
'Will they like me?
Will they want me?'
Self-Doubt can be as crippling as
self-denigration
Support network in place, confidence regained
Wear the right clothes,
the right smile. The ones that says
I am not terrified of these
blank questioning faces,
writing down my every word.
Sometimes smiling,
always nodding.
'We’ll call you.'
Experience says they won’t.
Optimism and desperation
Say they must
-8-
Waiting a day
is hard
A week
unbearable.
Every call could be the one
It plays like fiction
when the call finally comes.
Though it’s been replayed
a thousand times
there is elation, relief
caused by a simple offer.
-9-
One thing sought
now found.
Stability slowly returns –
mentally, physically, financially.
But the seeker cannot stop
searching, reaching higher,
discovering,
or the downward progression
could begin again
Everyone is sentenced to a lifetime searching.
Embrace this truth
and live
We are all seekers
Copyright ©
poet_in_waiting
... [
2006-06-16 10:44:07]
(Date/Time posted on
site)
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Re: Seekers
(User Rating: 1 )
by Puppy_dog_eyes on
Friday, 16th June 2006 @ 11:34:47 AM AEST
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a Message)
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You summed it up pretty well in this.
The destruction of self esteem and worthlessness that it is so easy to feel when you think the world doesnt want you anymore.
Thanks
Steve |
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Re: Seekers
(User Rating: 1 )
by Spike on
Monday, 19th June 2006 @ 07:35:15 AM AEST
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a Message)
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So, do I get my food stamps gringo, or do I have to stick you?
(sorry, channelling)
Obviously in your job you've seen a lot of desperation and heartache, the never-to-be-employeds, and those who will climb out of any hole, their will and determination so strong. I hope it doesn't hollow you out - judging by this poem, it hasn't yet.
Spike |
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