Oh tender thought so peaceful here
Please whisk away my wildest fear
You mold each frown into a smile
And urge me make my life worthwhile
I beg You not to leave my side
Where will I go, where can I hide ?
For in the dark I will be blind
Where is the road that I must find,
This path that leads to God above
Securing His eternal love ?
EXCUSE ME but today is one of those frustrating times when I am awash in waves of nostalgia that simply will not evaporate or disappear. I find these inexplicable occurrences are triggered by some minute detail, a date or an odd notion, secreted away in the intricate catacomb of the mind ! That’s a mouthful of words, but all true. At this moment, I believe the trigger to be the occasion of Memorial Day ! For those of my generation, I would imagine that World War Two ( note: in deference to those unfamiliar with Roman numerals ) is the guilty impetus today ! Perhaps almost 75 years later, one would expect the memories to have faded into nothingness, however that war remains as viable today as it was all those years ago. The names of places that existed only in travel brochures or the geographical almanacs of the era easily roll off our tongues plus we can actually spell them, like Enewetak or Tinian. Just imagine, a generation deprived of the option of earning degrees that can think AND spell ! Is that like walking and chewing bubble gum at the same time ? HAHA ! I wonder. Can anyone explain Common Core to me, is it related to Common Sense ? Thank you for your help ! Sincerely, Claire B.
Those memories that we recall
At eventide before nightfall
Range from the sweet to discontent,
And wonder where the dreaming went ?
Since dreams are an integral part
Of wishes sent from each one’s heart
They speak to us with questions bold
And query what our futures hold !
The answer won’t be quite complete
It may be vague or indiscreet
For only God can know what’s next
He is the Author of the text !
I felt the rain come rushing down
So hard it forced my tears to drown
And wash away to have no place
Here in my hollow lonely space !
The tears are old, the rain was new
Reliving days when we were two
Together on life’s crowded road
A hectic pace with heavy load !
Sometimes the things we don’t control
Perhaps deserve a lesser role
Since we are blinded by the past,
Know that some loves can never last !
Such disappointments we have found
Before our feet can hit the ground
The lesson is you cannot win
No matter who may let you in,
I find it strange that no one cares
Who gives or takes, or hoards or shares !
How sad that we are overcome
By tales of greed and waste by some
Our nation weeps we are so lost
There is no way to count the cost
Our dignity has been disgraced
And standards need be replaced !
The air is crisp, the wind is chill
The sun comes shining o’er the hill
The smell of green is ever sweet
The dewy grass enfolds the feet.
Can it be true, is this the spring
Slow to commence its latest fling,
Rushing to greet its worldly fame
Hoping to save its tarnished name ?
Oh little child, what have you known
Of loss and pain that is not shown
With all the chaos that you feel
How will you sense just what is real ?
Misfortune’s child wih life amiss
What happenings will you dismiss,
What patience can your nature find
To keep you safe and warm and kind ?
It must be stark to live each day
When no one’s there to guard your way
How can you bide in this bleak space
And keep God’s peace upon your face ?
The fog immerses one and all
The young, the old, the short, the tall
And softens all the edges found
As misty haze curls all around !
The fog seeps in with quiet ease
And silent moves upon the breeze
So like the clouds up in the sky
That sail and float and pass on by !
Against this passage we’re no match
There is no fog that we may catch
Likewise the wind and clouds, I’m sure
They carry on, their paths secure !
A child of God I chose to be
When I was but the age of three
My nana took me by the hand
To enter God’s great wonderland.
We sang the hymns that I loved best
The years have proved we stood the test
Her faith was strong, I took her cue
I followed God and I still do !
There are these stories I have read
Remaining here within my head
These tales speak of so many things
Like lions, dragons, frogs and kings,
A prince who lost his throne and crown
Another was that lonely clown !
I wonder what will follow next
Who’s left to pen enchanted text,
I think the age has come and gone
No words now to depend upon,
This simple fact I’d like to know
When truth is gone what’s left to show ?
How brilliant has this morn begun
Displaying such bright yellow sun
While helping every living thing
To share a vibrant breath of spring !
On seeing, one emits a gasp
This vision sweet within our grasp
To touch the rainbow near at hand
That leads us to the promised land !
The empty sounds that fill the air
The people who are slow to care
The places that no one has seen
The wishes that we do not mean,
The foolishness that life can be
Does jolt and overpower me !
I want to know my dreams are mine
Here on my own I will be fine,
I do not need to reinvent
Rules guiding how my time is spent
Or how I work or think or play
Especially the way I pray !
Each morning as the daybreak wakes
I hear the sound that nature makes
The leaves that rustle in the trees
With branches brushing all the eaves
And wings of birds fast in their flight
To quell the hunger of the night.
The simple sounds of life abound
And fill the void that silence found
That teaches us to listen close
For nature’s sounds, loud and verbose !
This heart of mine that has known fear
Is old and tired, pock-marked and sere
And has no time for words unclear
Or foolish thoughts too insincere !
The problem if one feels inclined
To make excuse for acts unkind
When rather is, it should not be
The power of God must flower free !
Scant time is left to make amends
To heal the wounds or curry friends
In days to come we must decide
Will we partake that final ride !
How many hopes have gone astray
And lost their dreams along the way
How many lives have come undone
And lost their values one by one ?
How many ways have we forgot
To do the right and worry not
We are bereft and lost and cold
How will our future world unfold ?
This we have lost and must demand
The law of God and faith of man !
I hear a sound what can it be
I glance around what do I see,
The sky so blue where eagles fly
Keen eye so true will morsels spy !
God’s creatures that pass overhead
They cannot speak, they have not read
Their home an aerie up so high
Far out of sight of human eye !
What do they know, how do they thrive
What instinct keeps their world alive,
I wish I knew if they could think
About our times perched on the brink ?
What do birds know of peace and war
What can it be they’re wishing for,
Wild denizens of God’s great sky
I wonder if they question why ?
Those memories that bring a smile,
The touches that make love worthwhile
The words that echo in the night
These are the embers of delight.
The sound of childhood’s rush of glee
With happy laughter bubbling free
Angelic faces shining bright
Reflecting God’s eternal light.
These are essentials to request
As life at hand survives the test
We will be saved and kept from harm
There in the crook of God’s left arm !
Of all the times we do recall
We laughed and hugged and had it all
The world seemed like a better place
Day started with a happy face !
Can you remember how we cried
When trouble came or someone died,
Life had a value way back when
What changed it all so quickly then ?
Has it occurred to you to find
That we are facing life’s decline
Where dreams belong to yesterday,
Hopes come and go and fade away ?
The tender thoughts that filled our mind
Those years ago have waxed unkind
And selfish seems to be the word
Describing acts both seen and heard.
What brought us to this hapless end
Where we are forced here to defend
Our love of God, our pride of land
Our self respect, our helping hand ?
Where in the darkness hides the light,
Where in the battle was the fight,
Where in the world can men be free,
Where in the future will we be ?
Questions asked with no answer found
This simple task turns round and round !
The speech of fools does foul the air
They cannot know, they do not care,
There is no lesson they have learned
There is no honor they have earned !
Sometimes we dance in different shoes
Why is it that the pair we choose
May not fit well first time around
Yet proper size can still be found ?
Shoes help us pace life’s hidden things
They come with laces and with strings
Some that we like or might have known
With soles of cork or leather sewn !
A shoe is meant to tread the ground
To help us keep the path we’ve found,
Along some lane or lonely street
Who dares to walk with barefoot feet ?
Come dance with us, small lonely child
And meet our Lord who’s meek and mild.
Each morning turn your face to God
With thank you for the gentle prod
That stirs one to believe again
In miracles like sun and rain !
Just search about perhaps you’ll find
A thousand reasons to remind
Us all to sing a joyful song
For in His world we all belong.
We’ll join our hands in grateful prayer
And sing and dance because He’s there !
How long or fleet our lives may be
Examples set by those we see
Have impact we can never know
Directions may move fast or slow !
Decisions made without much thought
Ensnare us in dilemma fraught,
Should we turn out our patient best
It would be sweet to ace that test !
I’ll settle for a joyous smile
Days that promise to be worthwhile
A life that thrives with energy
And faith that God abides with me ‘
My building reaches for the sky
My windows are an outdoor spy
I’ve never gone up on the roof
It seems too high and quite aloof.
Still I can join the world outside
Without the haste to duck and hide
My neighbors are the birds that sit
Upon the window’s ledge and flit.
They chatter and communicate
Oh such joy if I could translate
But since this wish can never be
I’ll settle for the sights I see !
We do not know, we cannot see
What is the cost of victory,
The war we waged was so much more
What would it take to life restore ?
The years have gone, what used to be
Has changed the path of destiny
There is no way left to explain
The loss of life, the futile pain !
Be sure that wars are endless grief
From which there seems no real relief
We thought it might soon fade away
Not now or next ten thousand days !
Oh would that God might smile on me
Remembering how close were we
When every night I say my prayer
I’m thankful for the time we share.
I bow my head in silent grace
For all the wisdom we embrace
I’m grateful for each day we’ve known
With seeds of love forever sown.
My life is all I’ve left to give
I pledge my soul that it may live
Oh blessed Lord, please hear my plea
Two simple words “remember me” !
I had a dream it’s clear to see
The sky was blue the wind was free
It made its way among the leaves
And whispered gently in the breeze.
The grasses swayed as if in tune
The daisies bobbed in their full bloom
The lilies flowered in the field
They stood quite still and did not yield.
It was a view that blessed my soul
And challenged me to see the whole
An image burnt within my mind
Perfection, I shall never find !
Sometimes I think that I am smart
Possessed of kind and loving heart
My timid soul has tried its best
To reach the goal or pass the test.
At times I fall and get up fast
While rapidly, brief moments pass
Swift hours go by and I wax old
My bones seem stiff, my feet are cold.
The winds of change have come and gone
I have retained my lexicon,
I think I’d like just one more chance
Before my last and final dance !
I’d like to be an elephant
With memory forever long,
A wrinkled trunk to honk and rant
My strength and power exceeding strong !
I’d travel with a circus troupe
To visit many foreign lands
While children all around would group
And smile and laugh and clap their hands !
Can you just picture all the joy
This spectacle would bring to me
Imagining I could employ
The magic wand my mind must be ?
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Claire V. Bogdanos 