Doggone Rubbitch [Poem]

DOGGONE RUBBITCH
By Gene Wilkes

A nasty bitch an' a dutty dog
Was limin' dong by de sea,
De bitch get vex an' tell de dog:
Haul yuh tail an' doh bodder me!
When people liming on de beach
I does get real nice food to eat,
It plenty better dan hustlin'
For scraps from dusbin on de street.
So me doh bark at nobody
Even when dey pelt mih wid stone,
When ah wag mih tail real friendly
Ah does get more dan chicken bone.
"Trini people is someting else",
De dutty dog tun rong an' say,
"Dey doh give ah shit bout nutten
When you see dey come out to play.
Dey eat dey food an' drink dey rum
An' leave rubbish all over de place,
You'd tink dat dese dam litterbugs
Doh belong to de human race.
But plenty ah dese same people
Belong to high society,
And does live in posh surroundings
Dat real tidy an' litter free.
TIDCO beach clean up committee
Does boast bout dey annual campaign,
But why should dey have to do dis
Again an' again an' again?
De tons ah rubbish dey pick up
Eh nutten to boast about...
It shows de measures dey using
Eh really have too mucha clout.
Every time dey have dey clean up
To me dey eh doin' it fair...
Good people pickin' up rubbish
Thrown by people who just doh care.
Dey should hold de ones dat litter
An' make dem self clean up dey mess,
Dat would better solve de problem
And be a warning to de res'.
We stray dog an' cobo does try
To clean up de place every time,
But better dan we to clean de mess
Dutty Trinis leave when dey lime."
De dutty dog leave Mayaro,
And went San Fernando to fete,
He hear there had plenty litter
And thought some nice morsels he'd get.
But he bounce up so much vagrant
Competing for food on de streets
Dat he really ketch he nennen
To get a lil someting to eat.
So back to Mayaro he went,
An he say never me again,
Livin' dong dere plenty better
Dan Sando I tellin' yuh plain !

© Copyright – Gene Wilkes, Cocoyea.
Posted with the kind permission of the poet.

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A Note From The Gull

While not a problem peculiar to Trinidad and Tobago, littering is another symptom of a lack of civic pride. While there are laws that cover littering and illegal dumping and we can argue that littering and dumping persist because of lax enforcement of the penalties, the root of the problem remains. If an individual does not fully comprehend the impact of his or her attitude and behaviour on the society and natural environment then it's going to be very difficult, even with laws in place, to convince him or her to instinctively make the right decisions about garbage disposal. What comes more naturally it seems, is a selfishness that makes it OK and not a matter of personal shame to leave a place less lovely than it was found. It is the absence of embarrassment that I find quite amazing.

Fortunately, there is hope to be found in the good people mentioned in the poem. These are the Trinbagonians who understand the importance of, and do feel pride in their environment. On the strength of these convictions, they wish to communicate and engender this pride in the wider community. One of these movements is the Greenlight Network. Visit their website and lend your support in any way that you can.

"Patria est communis omnium parens" - Our native land is the common parent of us all. Keep it beautiful, make it even more so. Thank you, Gene.

Blessed is all of creation
Blessed be my beautiful people
Blessed be the day of our awakening
Blessed is my country
Blessed are her patient hills.

Mweh ka allay!
Guanaguanare