Year end clean up

The year had dawned like the previous one

usual fanfare but nothing unusual about its arrival

then the pandemic dropped like a bomb

leaving us all verklempt and uncertain

but I have had enough and am determined

to exterminate this year completely

the last few days of the abominable year lurk slyly

I can no longer procrastinate the clean up

so with a broom and a dust pan in hand

I am going from room to room of my mind

to clean up the mess of this year

behind the door I find a spider web

entangled in it is a half dead romance

which floundered in the enforced separation

under the bed amidst the dust motes

are some old and many new regrets

shuffling from one corner to the other

restless, rudderless and remorseless

hidden behind some old ill-fitting clothes in the closet

are a mound of expectations which remained unfulfilled

they still look at me with accusing eyes

hoping to bear fruition

my complexes sit under the table glaring balefully

daring me to acknowledge and accept them

there is a box in the loft , filled with stench

I open it, to be shrouded in a miasma of anger

anger of discontent brewing for nine months

on the coffee table is an overturned tea cup

with the dregs of grudges still clinging to it

I vacuum the old threadbare carpet

the dust bag is filled with hidden pain

and out tumble a pile of vile secrets

shoved under during the year

when I pick an old shoe box

I find unremarkable memories lying prone and neglected

unremembered and unappreciated

some stale anxieties are lying in the fridge

along with some frozen revenge

the colony of complains run helter skelter

caught unawares by my determined broom

cussed stubbornness is hiding in a drawer

refusing to budge even an inch

comparisons lie under the quilt

and depression keeps skulking in the shadows

impetuous judgement sits on my favourite chair

staring at me disdainfully

thank god bigotry lay wilted

‘cos I am forgetful about watering plants

lethargy and fatigue require adroit scrubbing

they have cunningly ensconced themselves to the point of invisibility

I pick each one and shove them into a biodegradable bag

I could have just thrown them into the trash can

but these slimy snakes would have slithered back

so I make a bonfire of them all

and stand guard, till each burns down to cinders

then I immerse the ashes in the fast flowing stream of life

to take them as far away from me as possible

a great burden has been lifted from my heart

I know they will soon return in some other form

I don’t expect anything fancy or highbrow from the new year

just yearn for some rustic simplicity, good old joy,

a little hope, much love and lasting contentment.