"Friday Mornings" and "RIP John Donne"

Friday Mornings

The Presenters interviewed the excluded boy.
Their stated aim was to understand,
to see what could be improved,
how it could be made better for everyone.
 
“How did he feel about being excluded,” they asked.
“Don’t matter” the boy said.
“Don’t go anyway, ‘cept for Friday mornings.
Just mess about on the street.
Used to wind ‘em up when I went,
‘ave a laugh
that’s all
bit of fun messing.”
 
“Why?” an Interviewer asked.
“Borin’ innit.
Pointless
waste of time
apart from Friday mornings.
And I’m a waste of space
don’t wanna go
won’t go.”
 
“So you don’t mind being excluded?”
an Interviewer asked.
“Naw, rather be out with my mates,
they keep getting excluded an’ all,
there’s no point to it
we can’t do it
don’t want to try
they’re all idiots
don’t wanna go,
‘cept for Friday mornings.
 
The questions came and went
the answers repetitive
but no one asked him
what happened
on Friday mornings.

RIP John Donne

No man is an island wrote Donne
centuries ago.
He understood the predicament
understood
than man, or wo-man
is one part
of a whole
which is one part
of something larger
and so on
into mind-blowing infinity.
 
No man, or wo-man can stand alone
and reach their potential
in isolation
or when isolated
on some small island
however grandiose
the delusion.
 
And a small island cannot thrive.
if it makes its sea an impenetrable wall
to protect it from the to-ing and fro-ing
of all but but the tides -
 
except here in Britain of course.
It’s Brit-ish-mus that makes the difference.
Brit-ish-mus that will make it work
 
or not.
 
RIP John Donne