This Be The Verse

Guest contribution from anonymous contributor

This Be The Verse
By Philip Larkin

They fuck you up, your mum and dad.
They may not mean to, but they do.
They fill you with the faults they had
And add some extra, just for you.

But they were fucked up in their turn
By fools in old-style hats and coats,
Who half the time were soppy-stern
And half at one another's throats.

Man hands on misery to man.
It deepens like a coastal shelf.
Get out as early as you can,
And don't have any kids yourself.


Comments : An old Philip Larkin poem that is precise and disturbing: This Be The Verse . In the days that we find ourselves in, a reminder that we inherit many of the woes that we live with - and also that we need to continuously remind ourselves to do as little further harm as possible.

Maybe the sun will shine brighter tomorrow...

- Anon