We have seen the soldiers marching
And have heard all the cannons roar
In the distance, rockets launching
There in the middle of this war
To find ourselves thus encompassed
In a battle we cannot win
Where the madness is upon us
And the world’s drowning in chagrin !
The sky grows dim and darkens now
As ocean spray whips cross my brow
The storm clouds gather o’er my head
As lapping waves do seashells spread.
The beach is rippled, cold and wet
Where muddy footprints cannot set
While clams submerge in tidal sands
Betrayed by holes from siphons glands.
Each of us has a tale to tell
And each new thought, a wish to spell
We thank the Lord for His invent
And praise Him for the best intent !
I’ve tried so hard for many years
To bolster courage, stem the tears
Reminding me day after day
That memories don’t fade away.
There’s no way left to heal the burn
When love’s been lost or not returned
Love lingers long and leaves a scar
That shadows one both near and far.
I thank You Lord, and understand
The beauty that is still at hand
It’s free to all that have no fear
And keeps Your Presence ever near !
Oh wayward star where have you been
What kind of world are you lost in
The road is slick, the path is steep
Where is the vision that you seek ?
The night is long and lost in dark
While all about is drear and stark
The mist seeps through the window pane
Engendering a new refrain
Oh Lord, be kind, help us to see
Life’s face of virtuosity !
Oh little wren where have you been
I do so want you to come in
But I can’t find the window catch
That let’s me open up the latch
So you and I may nod and greet
Like strangers who meet most discreet.
However I believe that we
Might get along quite famously
If only you and I could share
Some friendly bastion of fresh air
It seems as this will never be
We’re simply bound to peek and see !
There are so many dreams I’ve had
Some old, some borrowed, some brand new
A few turned out to be quite sad
But there were winners, one or two.
I thank You Lord, for all the luck
And wish my friends much of the same
This effort took most of the pluck
To help save each one in the game.
I know that dreams will never end
Fact is they only fade away
In time, conditions all must blend
While dreams keep changing every day !
I spy the remnants of my life
Surviving all its stress and strife
I sense the depth of my defense
While reaching out for recompense.
Where are the goals I thought I had
That separate good from the bad,
When will I learn to use my time
In aiding those who dare to climb ?
I find myself caught in the net
That seems to have no exit yet
Please show me, Lord the way to go
To help our lives and values grow !
You love me Lord, I’m sure of that
Without Your care my world is flat
For very long I was this child
Consumed by disposition mild,
I’d always been a fan robust
Where manners are thought of as must
And try so hard to save a place
Here in my heart for God’s sweet grace !
I wish, I wish that I could be
A butterfly that flutters free
I’d hop from flower to flower
Sipping nectar by the hour
And spend my days in company
That looks and sounds the same as me.
I know my lifespan cannot last
Thus all I do must happen fast
Since most bug life accelerates
There is no time for friendly dates
And so this beauty that we see
Too soon before one knows shall flee !
Here am I wrapt within the tide
Of where all hopes and fears reside
As surging life and death are found
Beneath, above and all around
While time bides with us to the end
And God and angels all befriend !
Oh how I wish that I could be
Those candy canes upon each tree
All shiny and so red and white
Delicious tasting, bite by bite.
While peppermint is full of zest
Let’s put each flavor to the test
I’m sure that chocolate is great
For other celebration dates.
Since Christmas comes but once a year
A time of joy, a time of cheer
I’d like to think that you and I
Will share these pleasures by and by !
The Lady in the Harbor speaks for one and all
She stands there in the distance silent and so tall
All copper green and shining like a sentinel
Full of all those secrets and tales she’ll never tell
Lady of deep mystery, tears and joys we’ve shared
While God is watching o’er us, know how much He cares !
Do you hear the hum of the growing sound
As nature keeps expanding all around
Or feel the subtle tremors that rebound
From energies released in our surround ?
Can you smell the sweetness of this new ground
Where earth’s nutrients appear to abound
Breathing strength into gully, hill and mound
Producing plants and flowers brightly crowned ?
There are no words that can help explain
The length and depth of a mother’s pain
Losing a child no matter the age
To an illness or another’s rage !
Through the passage of time, aches may fade
As sadness and loss are all displayed
Seems the worst of all that can be said
Are that those we have loved are now dead,
And with heavy heart and tearful sigh
Were denied the chance to say goodbye !
There is this dream in which we’re caught
Wherein our hopes and fears are fraught
A place where passions that we knew
One day at last will follow through
To fold us in God’s circle of
His unabashed enduring love !
Each evening, stars begin to shine
With brilliant splendor all in line
Their fiery surfaces so clear
Why don’t I feel o’er come by fear ?
If all the stars up in the sky
Decided they might say goodbye
Can you imagine how the mess
Would cause us all such great distress ?
Be not afraid, as stars increase
Their numbers will not ever cease
One hundred billion born each year
Though half of those will disappear
Have faith in all, try to believe
God is our Truth, He won’t deceive !
We’ll smile a smile or sing a song
Join a chorus or laugh along
Please take a chance, what can you lose
How does one know the path to choose ?
The little child that each once was
Teenagers that will challenge cause,
The old, infirm or oddly gruff
Like those who’ve known a road more rough
These are what life is composed of
They dream of peace and search for love !
I’ve come closer to the truth in my simple ways
Then performers on a stage who come seeking praise,
I need no intervention, special treatment there
Only what is accepted in primary care.
Since time is on the move, I’d like to catch up soon
Anywhere at all between now and thirteenth moon !
SEE EXPLANATION: 13th Moon
“RETURN TO LIFE MORE SPIRITUAL AND HARMONIC”
Our aims got tangled and went adrift
The spirit’s drowning and needs a lift
While our dreams have somehow gone astray
Pray this confusion soon melts away.
At the root of all that we believe
And a part of ideas we conceive
May the love of God instill great peace
And from life’s distress grant all release !
Lord, You’re in charge of wrong and right
The sun by day, the stars by night
The winds that blow, the rains that fall
The light and dark, life overall.
You are the wisdom and the brains
The loss that memory retains
With dreams that we’re all guilty of
When all are young or bold in love.
The changes come, the changes go
Time flashes by the more you know
As God and all the angels smile
Because each is His darling child !
There is this world outside our door
Filled with guilt, rancor, so much more
A place where sadness multiplies
As lives are trashed before our eyes.
How many more are traumatized
By actions less than civilized ?
Please Lord, accept our gratitude
And in our lives kindness include
Teach us to be the best we know
To do Your will where ere we go !
There are these words that fill my heart
And bring each day a brand new start
With joy and love and common good
Celebrating life as we should.
Oh blessed Lord teach us to find
A better way to help unwind
Confusion and the sadness of
A world that is devoid of love !
There is a choice that one must make
About the path that each shall take
And of the road that lies ahead
With twists and gaps and bumps instead.
Our trail through life is seldom smoothed
It’s crammed with ruts and slightly grooved
Where we who struggle on alone
Will stumble o’er both rock and stone.
Tis best remembering to swerve
When we approach curve uopn curve
This course we’ve taken is intense
But God’s our Help and our Defense !
Have you seen smiles upon each face
Of winners who complete the race
It’s not about their speed or pace
But difficulties they’ve embraced !
It seems to me that you and I
Are more than simply passers-by
We share our life with God above
And are the result of His love.
So much alike, yet none the same
In manner, gait or lifetime aim
How simple it all seems to be
With values based on equity !
There is a flag flies in the wind
Red, white and blue and golden fringed
And from my window every day
Its mighty emblem is displayed.
Sometimes its folds blow in the breeze
And wave to all the leaf-filled trees
Its symbol shouting freedom first
With such a sympathetic voice !
Sometimes I dream ’bout long ago
And all the joys we used to know,
I miss that world so very much
Too sad we couldn’t keep in touch.
Seems now as though I’m in the past
Perhaps one that’s surviving last
Oh how I wish that I might spend
A day or two among my friends.
Well I’m no fool, that is a fact
We cannot bring the old times back
And need to bargain for much less,
Let’s settle for a huge God bless !
Oh to be the hero who lived to see the sun
Early in the morning after the battle’s won
Or to feel the wonder that follows in the morn
Now that all is quiet and hope can be reborn.
Sadly in the shadows, their voices silent now
Those who can’t return or will ever take their bow
Dreaming in a twilight that will not rise nor set
Those men that we’ll remember and cannot forget !
Claire V. Bogdanos 