October Rantin

Fain I wid gie ye blaud for’t, I’d dunt ye sair
for faain doon on obligations year on year
like some ill-trickit bangster breingin at the gate
till we’re aa stamagastert an hairt-seek wi aathin
ye’ve deen or nae deen, faur ye’ve lee’t or made on
tae be ettlin for the guid o the commonality.

But, na, ye bide hunkert doon in hoose an haa
wi yer gowd claith an yer pooer ingaithert.

Mony wid be gled o the hauf o’t nor yet a teind o’t;
mony wid be wellsom wi but the crummlins fae yer buird.

Ach but ye nivver gie a thocht on peer fowk as marraes
tae the like o yersel for are they nae grumlie wi dubs,
orra fuils nae fit tae swipe yer lums or dicht yer keich?

Be siccar tho, it’s you faa’s the lurdan here
for aa that ye’ve heize’t yersel abeen the lave o’s
like it wis yerself that won the kemp wi nae avantage,
like you nivver watch’t ony o the rest o’s hirple,
disjaskit an oorlich, hingin-luggit an thinkin
oor wanhap wis weel deserved the blame our ain.

D’ye think we jist maun thole’t, bein at far ablow ye
oor duil befits us, the lower orders, orra minkers
nae better than a rag-tag wheen o penny jos
oot for naethin but selfish gain or theivin,
we, faa daur tae peange at yer unjuistices,
again you, faa’s powstie rins nae maiter fit
an damn the loss tae ony o’s wi the gurr
tae mak thirsels hail an strick oot alane
for a worthy hame wi gear an breid, wi femily,
freens an neebours, tae big themsels a life
mair honest than your baigie-heidit joukin?

© BH, 2023

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The Association for Scottish Literature issued a month-based challenge for #scotstober to write poems using (some or all) of a list of words, one for each October day. I composed this with them all.…

The October words are in bold as shown on the list below:

fain - doon - bangster- stamagastert - faur - ettlin -- hunkert - pooer - - glade - wellsom - marraes - grumlie - fuils - lurdan - heize - kemp - hirple - disjaskit - wanhap - ablow - duil- jo - oot - daur - powstie- loss- hail- hame - neebour - baigie (neep or tumshie)

I took only a few liberties - ie. using plurals and past participles where necessary.