When we see the beast rising in our land,
When our leader is a man without honour,
We must remember how to survive:
1. Listen to the children,
They suffer greatly at the hands of the old.
Take their words seriously,
Especially when they make no sense.
If they are in tears, cry with them.
Now is a time for tears.
If they are laughing, laugh with them.
Laugh in the face of darkness.
The power of laughter is immeasurable.
Let the children refuse school.
They will learn nothing of value there anymore.
Instead, sit with them around a campfire.
Tell them the old stories you thought you had forgotten.
Give them your time. Put their needs foremost.
2. Give away your money.
Some people are so poor, it is all they have.
Know that all that you own is taken from the mouth of a baby at a food-bank.
So, remove the locks from your doors,
Feed the hungry in your kitchen,
lie the homeless in your bed.
Surrender your entitlement to anything that is denied another man.
Clothe yourself in rags,
Embrace dirt,
Baffle those who would bribe you with jewels.
3. Open your home to the foxes and badgers.
Hide them from the hunt and the cull.
Prefer the company of animals for animals do not lie.
Watch the ways of the cat and the dog :
Learn what you can from them.
Stay close to the ground.
Talk to the plants in your garden.
Seek guidance from trees.
You will find them most helpful.
4. Play.
Play for all you are worth.
Refuse to be hollowed out by the tide.
Sing wild songs on reckless guitars
Dance, dance as if your life depends upon it
because it probably does.
Say that you are an artist and you are painting your own life.
Make wayward decisions,
Act without reason,
Embrace chance and delight in risk,
so that your trail is impossible to follow.
5. Be kind.
Smile at strangers.
Know that they are doing the best they can.
Try not to discount those who do not agree with you.
You are probably both wrong.
Those people who have brought you to despair now
will need you to fight for them in the future.
As you have in the past, as you always will.
A hero is one who fights on though all is lost.
6. Be heroic
Ride the wolf.
Slay dragons.
andyjukes 
Outstanding!!
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You are so wise, and furthermore, you know how to put words together so they make sense!
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Having re-read, I think I could follow this to the letter. It’s crazy advice. I’ll just have to cloak some of it in mystery so the practical husband doesn’t know what I’m doing! Actually, you are really helping me right now because I have been so confused and sad. I feel that there is a movement afoot to destroy our beautiful world because the destroyers think they are preparing the way for the coming of Jesus. They just may destroy the world but Jesus is going to be a no-show and they are going to be bitterly disappointed while the rest of us weep because we tried and failed to stop them. Your words give me ideas for how to get over this and keep my sanity.
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The Christian fundamentalists are a layer of craziness we don’t have to deal with so much in the UK. We sent them over to you years ago. But we have a Government now who will not act on climate change and have just received a mandate to do as they please. Dark times. I am glad that my poems are of use to someone other than myself.
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It’s true. We now have capabilities to mess things up on a scale we never had before. I just fall back on how unimportant we all are in the Universe so if we don’t survive I am going to be bummed but not entirely so. I am especially bummed for the children who may not get the full beauty of life and have to endure what we’ve wrought.
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