More by Helen Heggadon
My friend complained she’d been ‘roasted’
When someone on social media posted
That she was old & frumpy and out of touch
I told her that she cares too much.
The online trolls that bring us to tears
Often do so, out of their own fears.
Criticism seems to demand a reaction.
But that’s not a solution, it’s a further distraction.
Travel down that road, you’ll find it never ends,
It’s just loops on around and around the bend.
In the greatest era to be alive, we feel so disenchanted,
For all the good we have in life, it’s all taken for granted.
With everyday luxuries, we live in extravagant ease,
Machines that do everything for us, yet we are still so hard to please.
How grateful previous generations would be, for the warmth we have in winter,
Or antibiotics to prevent disease from minor cuts and splinters.
From hot and cold water on tap, to phones, tech and tv
Instead of having gratitude, we demand more as ‘necessity’.
If we are lacking in one, we are a failure, we strive to have the works.
But when we have it all, we still want more, to add to our self-worth.
Our credibility and self-esteem seem governed by the latest fad,
No wonder we all feel stressed, we’re driving ourselves mad.
And it doesn’t stop with stuff in life, we also demand a ‘like’.
shower my posts with love my friend or you can take a hike!
When did it become important to us, for a stranger to find us pleasing?
Instead of the courage for honesty, it makes us more appeasing.
I look around the world today and fail to see what’s new.
Just regurgitated news, from regurgitated people, with a regurgitated point of view
As I remove this ‘stuff’ from my life, I feel like I am casting off chains.
Living more intentionally, with gratitude for what remains.
Items that have a function, people that don’t keep score.
and I am finding that a life of less, often leads to more.
© Helen Heggadon 2021
About the poem
I wrote a similar poem years ago, called Another Generation. It was about a friend who was upset at herself for overspending on make up while in debt; that poem is embarrassingly outdated now, so I have re written it and changed it. This one adds in my recent efforts for minimising my life, both digitally and physically.
Life was feeling very much the same, the same stuff as everyone else, the same goals, the same news, same, same, same! I got very frustrated at my lack of new ideas, yet also overwhelmed by how much my attention was being pulled off in different, yet unfulfilling directions. I decided to cup out the excess, and it has been transformative. I started with the obvious, and as I revisit an area, more and more stuff seems obviously unnecessary. I also included a digital detox. initially I deleted Facebook, but then reinstalled it, but have unfollowed a lot of groups and people, that no longer align with what I want to see online. Around the home I have decluttered around 50 black sack full’s of stuff, mostly to donation centres or friends.
Written by Helen Heggadon
Hi, my name is Helen Heggadon, I am 50yrs old, I live in Devon with my husband Keith. I work as a Customer Sales Advisor for a leading Telecare company. I am a member of Toastmasters International in my spare time, and am taking part as a census office for the office of national statistics this year, I am hoping that will generate something to write about!
I have never had any proper training for poetry, or any other kind of writing, aside from what you get in high school. I did have some poetry published in my maiden name when I was in my early 30’s, which seemed like some kind of error or miracle at the time and thought they had made a mistake wanting my words in their book. (The now closed group was called The Peoples Poet and was based out of Poole).
I love writing, reading, and getting to know people. I have lived a varied life with many different experiences, I hope I can express them well enough here to be interesting, funny, or enlightening.