Home » Poems » Best » John Fenn » Best John Fenn Poems

Best Poems Written by John Fenn

Below are the all-time best John Fenn poems as chosen by PoetrySoup members

Details | John Fenn Poem

What Shall We Do

It was out in Venezuela when I ran into this sailor
He was sitting at the bar, right next to me 
He was rugged he was mean and he wasn’t very clean
But I listened when he spoke about the sea

There were stories there were tales, of the hunt for killer whales
When his leg was bitten off below the knee
How en route to Senegal they were shipwrecked in squall
He survived for sixteen weeks, tied to a tree

Came the time in Kathmandu, him the captain and the crew
Were becalmed for seven days, and in a stew
So they hauled him up the mast, where they tied him good and fast
Then they fed him with baked beans, until he blew
 
After that there came the beast and the native king and priest
It was really getting far too much to bear
As the yarns grew more far fetched, with my patience sorely stretched
I decided that I really didn’t care

So I bought him one more rum and I said, “the time has come”
That I needed to go out, to use the loo
So he said “young man be fast, for you haven’t heard the last,
Like, when I first met your mother, in Peru

Details | John Fenn Poem

I Never Saw It Coming

I never saw it coming 
It just crept up unawares
Probably this morning
Whilst I was still upstairs
I thought I caught a glimpse 
As I had my tea and toast
For just a fleeting moment
Like a phantom or a ghost
It was later that it hit me
And the feeling left me cold
I realised that suddenly
I’d gotten bloody old
Looking in the mirror
For reflections never lie
I saw a total stranger
And he looked me in the eye
Reflecting on the image
And all that I could see
Sadly I concluded
That this, was really me

……………………………….......I never saw it coming 


© John W Fenn  20-08-2009

Details | John Fenn Poem

Aerial Assault

If pigs could fly it wouldn’t be good
You’d have to go out with a brolly
Wear Wellington boots and waterproof suits
Life wouldn’t be happy or jolly

There’d be danger around every corner
You’d think in your car you’d be safe
But unless you’re under some cover
Either you or your car they will strafe

The Towns would be dirty and smelly
And slippery in the extreme
We’d have to employ a small army
In an effort to keep the streets clean

Now don’t you get all of a fluster
For the scientists haven’t yet found
The means of piggy propulsion
Or getting the beasts off the ground

If one day this nightmare should happen
It won’t come as any surprise
If they manage to get piggies airborne 
Then the price of bacon will rise

© John W Fenn  17-01-2009

Details | John Fenn Poem

Magic Carpet

So you rode the magic carpet
And you sailed above the skies
You were taken by the beauty
You were blinded by the lies
As you soared up through the heavens
You could sense the angels sighs
They could see into your future
And they witnessed loves demise
Now you head towards disaster 
With no one to hear your cries
As you cling on to your memories
And the cold wind burns your eyes

Details | John Fenn Poem

Oubliette

Like the deepest darkest chamber
Way below the castle wall
There’s no one to see the teardrops
There’s no one to hear you call
High above a light is shining
Is that laughter you can hear
People talking, people playing
While you’re trembling with fear
Though the cell is non existent
You have only you to blame
There’s no lock, there are no bars
But it holds you just the same

Details | John Fenn Poem

Knight In Shining Armour

Sweep away the past, and all
The times that brought you sorrow
Your future lies in us until
Tomorrow and tomorrow

Lock your nightmares up beyond
Some vast and solid door
I’m your knight in shining armour
And will be for evermore

Shut out your lifelong worries
All your troubles and your fears
Lay down with me my lady
I will kiss away your tears

Details | John Fenn Poem

Control

Remote controls are funny things
Then, maybe it’s just me
I wave it around for hours 
But, still can’t get channel three
It will always find the menu
For the treble and the bass
If remote controls were human
I would slap them in the face

Remote controls are not my thing
Perhaps its my technique
If they could make one voice controlled
I’d only have to speak
It would follow my instructions
And obey them to the letter
A voice controlled remote control 
Things couldn’t get much better

I’d shout out my instructions
“Change the channel, fifty four
The volumes far too low now
Turn the sound up, give me more”
If they made this little gadget
Then there’s something I’d be fearing
That knowing my track record
I’d get one that’s hard of hearing

© John W Fenn  03-07-2009

Details | John Fenn Poem

If I Could Have a Word With God

If I could have a word with God
I’d tell him I’m not pleased
Throughout the years he’s toyed with me
He tempted and he teased
He’d lead me up that primrose path
Then  with my goal in sight
Spins me round a dozen times 
And turn out every light
Seems to me whenever I’m
About to be in clover
Someone pulls the rug out
And I have to start all over
So please God if you’re listening
I’ve never asked for much
The next time I’m successful
Don’t kick me in the crotch

©  John W Fenn  18-08-2009

Details | John Fenn Poem

Arachnaphobia

Over in the corner 
By the photo of the Queen
Lives a great enormous spider
Trying hard, not to be seen
He is very very hairy
And he’s very very fat
And the last time that I saw him
I could swear he wore a hat

Now he’s lived behind the picture
For a while, I am sure
He moved there from the gap
Between the skirting and the floor
He used to be quite cosy
In his space against the wall
With his appetite for flies
He soon found it far too small

When I walk in the room now
He will give me such a stare
And looks at me as if to say
“I really couldn’t care”
He’s bigger now, it’s frightening
And the family live in fear
When I popped out for my tea
He made the budgie disappear

My minds made up, he’s has to go
And so, I grab a towel
I walk into the lounge, and,
Did I really hear a growl?
My fathers says I’m stupid
Are you man or are you mouse?
I’ll answer him tomorrow
When I’ve finished moving house

© John W Fenn  13-07-2009

Details | John Fenn Poem

Beauty

The day was bright and sunny
The temperature was high
The birds were singing sweetly 
High up in the clear blue sky

The babbling brook was babbling
To the sighing of the trees
The butterflies were coasting
Way up high upon the breeze

I gazed at all the wonders
Mother nature had in store
And I marvelled at her beauty
As I stood outside my door

That life affirming moment 
Sent a shiver down my spine
So I went to watch the tele
With another glass of wine