Frank Thomas

The end of June
1904
In a house in Horsham
My old dad
Was born
Into the Tyler
Family 8 brothers
And two sisters
Mum and dad a new Dawn
Newalls pond was down the road
And it wasn’t long before
The boys went out a poaching
Wild food more and more
Carp and Perch and rabbits
Became the chosen fair
Of All the tricks around those days
My dad was aware

Tickling trout
Fishing carp
Snaring rabbits
Ethically
Little money
Wet or sunny
Food had to be free

As for me
Harming souls
Animals
It’s not my thing
We kept chickens
We kept rabbits
All of them
Delightful habits
My dad wanted me to be
A killer
But no he did t see
The need to love them
Except to eat he ate I didn’t
Ever like meat

Rhode Island Reds
Twelve of them came to be
They locked my legs incessantly
But I would never break their necks
Not eat their flesh not me

Hens lay egss
But some alas
Eat the eggs
And why not they
Know that humans eat them too
Probably they take the view

Then we shall eat them
So of course
Empty the yoke
And then just force hot Coleman’s mustard
Inside and
Leave the eggs upon the land

The hens may eat the mustard
They
Did in fact and so I say
Greed and arrogance insolence too
Human beings suck
They do

He was my dad
But the crap he ate
Meat and meat and meat and meat
I liked salads. I liked fruit
That’s the stuff I liked to eat