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voice

Image courtesy of Pixabay

in need to be heard,
he sings. flies. calls. cries. songbird –
winged and otherwise.

RELATIONSHIP

This is an age of unbroken connection.
Our fingertips tap into instant links.
We’ve little tolerance for imperfection,
And as our ego grows, our goodwill shrinks.

And in this age of unbroken connection,
Our face-to-face relationships have waned.
Resulting loss of physical affection
May render us emotionally maimed.

Now suddenly a time of social distance
Is thrust upon us necessarily.
Most look for ways to be of some assistance,
And find these ways, extraordinarily.

I’m thankful in this time of social distance
For God, who binds my drifting heart to His.
Our Father God pursues us with persistence.
Be still, and let Him show you who He is.

Quick note: My last three lines include words and truths from scripture, and from a long-loved hymn, as follows:

“Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing” by Robert Robinson includes the phrase of prayer, “Bind my wandering heart to thee.”

The Bible overflows with God’s pursuit of us, including Psalm 139.

Psalm 46:10 tells us, “Be still, and know that I am God.”

CRUTCHES

Photo by Daniel Nebreda, at Pixabay

Call faith what you will –
a crutch, if it helps me stand
on my principles.

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GIGGLE GOADERS

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Laughter with cousins, next generation! Keep it coming, fam!

Frazier, Moonstruck, Princess Bride,
Cousins on my father’s side,
Husband’s laugh that fills the house,
(“What’s that roar?!” “That’s just my spouse.”),
White folks dancing (should be crimes!),
Silverstein’s and Nesbitt’s rhymes,
English Bulldogs, a good pun,
Babies’ giggles … guess I’m done.

May 16, 2019

ALL I KNOW IS THIS

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When my kids were in school, I prayed for them.
Shooting up requests to God
for them to learn
respect their teachers
make friends.

Now, my granddaughters are in school, and I pray for them.
Pleading with God
for no bomb threats
sex trafficking
shooting up.

4 Comments

January 9, 2019

And It Makes Me Wonder

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There’s a man who is sure
That he glitters like gold
And he’s building a wall for safekeeping.
In the office he sought
When he got there he thought
With a word, he could get what he came for.
Oh oh oh oh, and will he build the wall he had promised?

When he speaks, is there truth?
See, I want to be sure,
‘cause I sense that his words have no meanings.
And these memes that we share,
They don’t mean that we care.
Sometimes ALL of our thoughts are misgiving.

Oooh, it makes me wonder.
Oooh, it makes me wonder.

There’s a feeling I get
That’s too much like a threat
That’s expressed as “kind” words are escaping.
Through his acts have I seen
Rings of smoke through the mirrors,
And pained faces of those who are seeking.

Oooh, it makes me wonder.
Ooh, it really makes me wonder.

And it’s whispered that soon there will come a new moon,
And the piper will be charged with treason.
Then a new day will dawn
Talk of walls will be gone,
But will we have the peace we’ve sought after?

Could be a hustler in our Whitehouse,
But how do I know?
It’s just an inkling from what I’ve seen.
Yes, I have seen our politics spun
And in the long run
It’s all talk to spin the road we’re on,
And it makes me wonder.

My head is aching, and I can’t stand
This hate in my land.
The piper’s calling us to join him.
Dear Lady, do I hear you weeping,
And do I see
Indignant tears on the whispering wind?

And as we contemplate our walls,
Do we not stand to lose our soul?
Is our safekeeping worth it all?
Oh Lady shine through harbor’s fog!
Let dialogue be kind and true.
And let us listen very hard,
And tune our heart-song from our past,
When liberty was welcoming
When we were hailed as brave and free,
And we hadn’t closed our stairway to heaven.

Please note: Some phrases from the original Stairway to Heaven by Led Zeppelin were intentionally used in this poem.

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March 30, 2018

The Bloodstained Cross (Sonnet for Simon of Cyrene)

Image credit: http://catholicinbrooklyn.blogspot.com/2013/03/meditation-on-fifth-station-of-cross.html

God’s word says little of this man: A Jew,
Pulled from the crowd to carry Jesus’ cross.
I wonder what he felt, and what he knew.
What ‘Jesus stories’ had he come across?

The Passover perhaps had drawn him there –
A dispersed Jew, returned to celebrate,
Who suddenly now had a cross to bear?
So little known. So much to speculate.

But he was there, as God had preordained,
And I can’t help but think that he was stirred,
To look into the eyes of one so maimed,
Still full of grace. God’s only Son. God’s Word.

Oh Simon, what an awe-inspiring role …
You touched the very blood that saved your soul.

3 Comments

August 29, 2017

“Homeland” A Curtal Sonnet

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Photo by Daniel Kain

Confession time: I sometimes watch Fox News.
And CNN. And MSNBC.
Still here? Okay. Now let me tell you why:
These folks are out to shape our nation’s views.
And even though I’m thankful speech is free,
Both left and right have somehow gone awry.
I fear our news is, by design, whitewashed.
No more can we agree to disagree.
Our nation needs a friendly meal. With pie.
Let’s eat good food and talk. And then you wash,
I’ll dry.

Excited and humbled to discover this poem sneaked into Robert Lee Brewer’s Curtal Sonnet Challenge Top Ten! To read the winning poem (Under the Rainbow by respected poet Jane Shlensky) and the other Top Ten poems, follow this link:

http://www.writersdigest.com/whats-new/wd-poetic-form-challenge-curtal-sonnet

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