This poem by Philip Larkin is one of my all-time favorites, and I'm using it simply to introduce those of you who aren't familiar with his work to his sardonic wit, because what I really want to share is a poem called "Church Going" that I will post next. For now bask in the succinct perfection of "This Be The Verse"
They fuck you up, your mum and dad.
They may not mean to, but they do.
They fill you with the faults they had
And add some extra, just for you.
But they were fucked up in their turn
By fools in old-style hats and coats,
Who half the time were soppy-stern
And half at one another's throats.
Man hands on misery to man.
It deepens like a coastal shelf.
Get out as early as you can,
And don't have any kids yourself.
-Philip Larkin
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