This episode of We’d Like A Word features spoken word performance poet Isi ‘The Scribe’ Adeola who reads us several of his poems and one brand new poem written in 24 hours and constructed from suggestions sent to us by our listeners.
And you guys were cruel. CRUEL.
He had to incorporate phrases like ‘I tawt I taw a puddy tat’ and ‘Broken Britain’ as well as ‘unicorns’ and ‘serendipity’. But he prevailed, it’s a great poem and here it is! (reproduced with Isi’s kind permission):
Why do I do this to myself?
I give myself concrete deadlines and then feel crushed beneath the slate
I’m punching well above my weight.
I get inspired because I wish to be the change you want to see, but then deflated as it turns out I’m just chasing unicorns.
Fictional figments of a wandering monkey mind that points out useless distractions on an internet safari of daydreams and cat videos.
Destination procrastination is where I’m headed. It’s why I medicate the pain of loneliness and mad times in broken Britain
My semantics may sound dramatic but that’s genuinely how I feel under self-imposed pressure.
My monkey mind calls the shots now screaming at clip after ridiculous clip.
A TED talk about how to tie your shoes
Is Janice Chandler’s soulmate?
I tawt I taw a puddy tat!
You bet you taw a puddy tat – the six hundredth puddy tat from my YouTube playlist
Because I have taken on too much, I am doing the impossible, like ice skating through Hades
Swimming through a swamp of demands and giving myself reprimands for not meeting them
Just before I give up and curl up in the foetal position, serendipity swoops me off my feet, with a fresh breath and grace catches me before I hit the ground
They warm my face with a smile and say, “We’d like a word”. I laugh out loud, because I know I’m in good hands – my brow softens and I listen to receive and understand.
The wisdom of evolution says change and design happen, incrementally.
We know your load is great, but you’ll get through it, eventually.
We’ll come through when you least expect it – little incremental breadcrumbs of inspiration will fall at your feet when you feel lost at the start of your journey.
All you have to do is show up!
We also hear work by Jo Bell, and poems from a couple of excellent young poets and from Paul’s dad.
It’s a grand show. So do listen in.
Isi ‘The Scribe’ Adeola is a spoken word performance poet and zoologist. He’s an Outreach Development Officer at the Royal Veterinary College and a Discovery and Learning Officer at ZSL London Zoo. He has an MSc in wild animal biology too … but we’re just delighted he writes and performs great poetry.
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