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Open Poetry #48
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Just Outside
| Open Poetry #48 |
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Just Outside |
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Lighthousebob Member Elite
since 2000-06-14
Posts 4725California |
Just Outside Yesterday, a mallard duck flew across the sky and two red-beaked ones just watched it fly. "Too lazy," I guessed, "to even try." Today, an ambulance went whizzing by and a fire truck with siren cries. I pondered, "Where?" I wondered, "Why we never spoke, but hi and bye... and the lady next door just died!" |
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| © Copyright 2013 Robert E. Michaud Jr. - All Rights Reserved | |||
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JerryPat2 Member Laureate
since 2011-02-06
Posts 16975South Louisiana |
Another case of how self-centeredness we have become in the world as we know it Bob. I am guilty of that myself far too many times. ~*~ Jokes about German sausages are the wurst~*~ |
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OwlSA Member Rara Avis
since 2005-11-07
Posts 9347Durban, South Africa |
A wake-up call of note! May we all heed it! Beautifully and poignantly expressed, Bob. Here in South Africa, our community efforts to reduce the ever-rising crime-rate, gets those of us who are pro-active, to know our neighbours, but sadly we still do not know much more about them than their participation in what some of us have put together and their enthusiasm or their apathy and/or negativism. Oh, and à propos your reply in your poem, "Owl", smiles (lol)! Owl |
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Lighthousebob Member Elite
since 2000-06-14
Posts 4725California |
Thanks Jerry and Diana (Owl)... It's puzzling and yet amazing how events in life seem to mesh themselves together and, though there's quite a few that don't, how certain visuals do stick and how they reveal themselves at the strangest of times and in the strangest of circumstances. Jerry, you're right about self-centeredness and thanks for understanding and for your assuring that I'm not alone. Thank you!  Diana, first, seeing your smiles always makes me happy. Thank you. I like what's being done in South Africa. I do. Thanks for sharing. My wife and children have also done this at various times in our neighborhood... It's called canvasing (a lot more does go on than just selling cookies). The organized form of 'community' effort to stop crime in the US is to, for the most part, form vigilante groups called 'Neighborhood Watch' who 'watch' for crime and stick a sticker in their window rather than, like South Africa, put forth efforts to 'prevent' it. So you know, in this case, I do like the ideals of South Africa much better. |
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OwlSA Member Rara Avis
since 2005-11-07
Posts 9347Durban, South Africa |
There are vigilante groups in South Africa too, trying to fight crime with crime. Our 5 (about to be 6) local Neighbourhood Watches, one of which I run, and the local Sector Policing Forum which my son runs and of which I am secretary (and a lot of others), do things differently. In our area, we have eyes-and-ears-only resident patrols linked by phone to the police and a security company and various networks (some of the patrollers have short range licence-free radios linking them either to home or another resident vehicle patrolling at the same time) to send information of suspicious activities or crimes in progress and to which the police, security company and residents respond, and my son organises regular large Full Force Operations of visible policing along with residents, the security company and the police, during which the police and/or security company arrest suspects if we find them, with the help of the input of the residents. We have a monthly SPF meeting, and the NW that I run has a monthly meeting too and the police reports that are sent to me monthly I put on to a database and draw statistics for the meetings and the minutes which are distributed at the meeting and emailed to others. We have NW boards up (4 in the NW area I run) and the NW I run has a bank account into which residents pay if they want to and we use the proceeds for foot patrols (by a local security company) as and when we can afford them – which so far has been limited to a few in December and January, the 2 worst months for crime. We actually got the crime down to almost nil a few years ago when all the current 5 NW’s, the resident patrols in particular, were functioning well, but patrollers in all NW’s got apathetic and/or lazy and/or bored and/or thought the patrols were a waste of time, and hey presto, the crime rate in our area now matches everywhere else. However, we are trying to revive all the NW’s and the one I am in is currently the most effective and the least dead. I am currently involved in 5 roster patrols a month (and do a few mini-ones at random – like this afternoon). I have a roster patrol tonight/tomorrow morning with 2 fellow patrollers – probably 3am to 4am. There are other things we do too, but I have rambled on long enough. Smiles. It’s hard work, time-consuming and costly, but the alternative is not nice. Sorry to go on so long but I thought that some of those ideas may be useful to your NW. Owl |
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Lighthousebob Member Elite
since 2000-06-14
Posts 4725California |
Owl, as I've responded to your reply to "Owl", I'll repeat it again here, you definitely are one for detail and now I feel a bit guilty because I really don't know what to do with all this viable information that you've so graciously (graciously) shared with me. Thank you! I really appreciate that you've shared so much of yourself and the activities of which you partake with me. Thank you, and I used to live in an area where, like you are now, we had to have, had to have due to gang violence and such and such, neighbor's home riddled with bullets, etc. etc. a very effective and workable 'Neighborhood Watch' and, through observation, I've noticed that most are not so much so, but, today, fortunately, but not so in regards to the information you've shared, we live in a very quiet rural area, in my back yard a tractor pulling a plow is plowing up fields and another's planting seed as we speak, and, sooooo, I'm at a bit of loss what to do and where to go next with this, but I will, I will pass it on whenever given opportunity. Thank you, I really do appreciate it! I do! Thank you! |
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Michael
Moderator
Member Rara Avis
since 1999-08-13
Posts 7666California |
Sharp, indeed. In this computer age it's quite common for someone naturally introverted to have an experience like this. Not sure what's up with the duck, but I know it's hard for humans to breach their comfort zones willingly. Going out to meet those around you that you see everyday might save some guilt but some of us are just not socialites, andi f such efforts all through life have not yielded any positive relations or effects, it would only seem natural that we'd be less inclined toward such attempts as we grew older. Just two cents from the peanut gallery. Thought inspiring read... enjoyed. Michael |
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Lighthousebob Member Elite
since 2000-06-14
Posts 4725California |
Hey, Michael... Thanks for taking the time to respond with such an acute and perceptive reply, thank you, and, just to let you know, I do think the points you've made here, though from 'the peanut gallery', the cheap seats that rain peanut shells down on poorly performing performers, where very true in regards to people and life and my life as well in that I am, I am not much of a 'socialite' at heart, really, I'm not, but, in regards to the duck, smiles, and being that duck hunting is quite prevalent in our area, an 'introverted' duck would probably be a very good thing and he did seem to be flying quite fast and alone, so, um, yeah, I'm thinking, he's probably introverted and still OK. I hope (Please, please, people, don’t start throwing peanut shells). |
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