Winter is chill
and you can catch your death
of cold.
Spring can bounce you in directions
too bold.
Summer’s so hot, it isn’t funny
at all.
But mess with Autumn, and you’re in
for a Fall.
poetry
Spider, Please Step Forward
You put your right foot in, and the other one, and the other one, and the other one,
and the other one, and the other one, and the other one, and the other one.
You put your right foot out, and the other one, and the other one, and the other one,
and the other one, and the other one, and the other one, and the other one.
You do the hokey pokey and you weave another web,
that’s what it’s all about.
Will the following spider please step forward.
You weave your webs
to little fanfare
blinged out with dew
in the chill morning air
but they’re the ones I see,
for invisible in space,
are the ones I walk smack into
strung all across my face.
The Refrigerator
I’m uncertain whether the rest of the world
shows such an affinity for display
of so many wide ranging items as we Americans
on our refrigerators today.
I’m sure there are many
which are so organized that they
surely represent a family
with all its ducks in a row
at work
and even at play.
Then there are cold boxes such as ours
with a mish-mash of photos and art
that depict both young children
and adults that merely seem young
though not physically,
maybe at heart.
There’s odes to procrastination
like a gift certificate half used
with paper
now yellowed
and just a little abused.
There are photos of children in school
and with their families at Christmas.
There are x-rays of bones broken
several presidential administrations
past. There are coupons put up
with good intentions and recipes for food
inventions.
I’ve a mind to clean it all,
to make the fridg. look right.
I just hope I don’t lose something
important like an Eisenhower
presidential election ball invite.
New Energy
There’s no night so dark
His name can’t illuminate,
no depression so deep
He can’t lift it.
No heart so weary
and grown tired of beating
He can’t recharge
like the sun coming up.
The meaningless
find new meaning.
Those wondering why
find new hope.
Those finding themselves
short of the summit
suddenly spy
a new length of rope.
He’ll breath into you compassion
when maybe you thought
you didn’t care.
He’ll be the force
lifting your wings
with angels into ebullient air.
In the Shadow of Your Wings.
6 When I remember You
on my bed,
I meditate on You in the
night watches,
7 For you have been my
help,
And in the shadow of
Your wings I sing for
joy.
Psalm 63:6-7
In the shadow of your wings, Lord
I am strengthened.
In the shadow of your wings
dread runs away.
In the shadow of your wings
the enemy’s arrows cannot harm me.
In the shadow of your wings
my foe’s
force of onslaught
matters not.
Let your angels’ army
seize the day.
Perplexed Dragon Conundrum
There once was a village
set below the dragon mountains,
that lived in harmony with the beasts,
despite their fiery reputation.
But then one day a grumpy dragon
by the name of Malfeasadex,
displayed such destructive behavior
like torching crops and the community hall,
that the people were quite perplexed,
and so put out the call…
…to a famous dragon whisperer,
by the moniker of Dragon breath Pete,
who lived near Mid-Evil Falls,
which was the county seat.
So Pete set up a meeting
with grumpy Malfeasadex,
to determine why the dragon
had been so awfully vexed.
It turned out Mal. had a habit
of eating pizza and drinking rum,
which gave him terrible heart-burn,
which for a dragon is a conundrum.
So to cure the dragon’s pain
and remove his awful wrath,
the town henceforth sent tribute
of huge quantities of ant-acid
which put him back on the peaceful path.
Patience
the virtue of patience
if the truth is told
comes more easily
as one grows old(er)
as hair grows gray
and eyes distant
chairs more attractive
hills resistant
wisdom dictates
a more clever path
than the one trod before
when I was a lad
Colossians 3 Haiku
heavenly conscience
earthly preoccupation
divided desire
Inheritance
the inheritance of
the joy of the Lord
is of the forever kind
a true joy and gift
not earned by effort
or indeed birthright
freely given
though dearly bought
by the King
above all kings
the One who causes
my countenance to glow
and my heart to sing
Memorial Day
This coming Monday in the United States we celebrate Memorial Day. Originally known as Decoration Day, it was started as a way to remember all those combatants who died in battle during the Civil War. Since then it has come to include all those who have died in U.S. military service.
That photograph you’re looking at,
the young man with the grin.
There’s a sparkle in his eye that hints at
the joy and light within.
He didn’t live to become an old man,
but I remember him.
Then there’s the portrait of the nurse following
graduation with her class. She served in the
Pacific during WW II. You could tell her she helped
so many, but to her it would always be too few.
I remember her.
For those who died in the heat,
for the ones who passed in the cold,
holding tightly letters in weary hands
that spoke of work, family, home.
Some brought courage with them.
Some found courage there.
Some found courage with hands firmly clasped
and lips uttering prayer.
Whether young or old,
timid or bold,
we honor them all
as their stories are told
and we gather near the flame
lit in their memory.
We tell their stories,
and we remember.
Write here, Joel. 