REMEMBERING WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE

I was observing a grandfather and his granddaughter watching a sunset

when I heard the granddaughter’s voice declare…

“Pick me up Grandpa…pick me up…

I want to see what it looks like from up there!”

There is an innocence possessed when we’re children

that makes us see the world a little differently…

Everything is brand new and wonderful…

and we are amazed by all that we see…

Eventually, however, we grow up…but do you ever wonder…what is the cost?

For it seems the more we see of the world around us…

a little more of our innocence is lost.

We’re no longer innocent children…seeing the world a little differently.

Everything is familiar and common to us now…

and we’re not as amazed as we used to be.

But we can be…we only have to think back to when we were children

close our eyes for a moment and trust…

in the innocence and wonder of childhood

and when we open our eyes…they’ll adjust.

We’ll begin to notice things we long ago forgot were there…

“There’s some much beauty all around us!” we’ll exclaim.

And as long as our eyes remain focused

the world will never again look the same…

And it’s likely the next time we’re watching a sunset

Any time…any place…anywhere…

we’ll sit close to the ground…and we’ll smile

as we remember what it looks like from down there.

MOMENTS OF LOVE

No matter how pervasive it seems today…no matter how much it tears our world apart…

I will not allow hate to blacken my soul…I will not allow it to infringe on my heart.

Instead I will look for moments of love….I will allow love to muffle the hate…

I will look for these moments wherever I can…and it’s these moments I will celebrate.

I will look for people holding hands with each other.

I will find a person soothing another who cries.

I will find two lovers embracing…and I will discover the love in their eyes.

I will watch people dancing together.

I will watch others sway to the music…or kiss.

I will see two old friends come together…and listen in as they reminisce.

I will find someone helping a stranger…I will watch as flowers or candy impress…

I’ll watch a silent exchange of tenderness…in a gentle touch..or a loving caress.

I will watch a man put his head on his wife’s tummy and suddenly become aware

that he’s about to become a father…that there’s a new life growing in there.

I’ll watch another mother listen to a woman’s chest and smile as she becomes aware

that her son’s heart is making a wonderful sound…her son’s heart…that was transplanted there.

I will find couples watching a sunrise…eating a romantic dinner for two…

Families hugging…watching a sunset…

and I’ll listen for the words…’I Love You.’

It’s amazing when you seek out moments of love…

how quickly you become aware

that you don’t have to search very far…very wide…

for moments of love can be found everywhere.

Moments of love so universal they will comfort our minds…

as they strengthen our hearts and our souls…

For I believe…no matter how much hate tries to tear us apart…

Moments of love will keep our world whole.

THE LITTLE BIRD

We heard the little bird before we saw her…

as hand in hand we walked along

for it made us stop and listen

when the tree exhaled her song.

“She is so beautiful.” I whispered,

“and her song is so divine,

I wish that I could capture her…

I wish that she was mine.”

I would keep her in my bedroom.

She wouldn’t have to live within a tree.

I would feed her, clean her…love her…

and she would only sing for me.”

“Yes, you could take the little bird home.” Mom smiled

“You could care for her…give her a name,

but no matter how often she sang for you

her song wouldn’t sound the same.”

“What makes her song so beautiful

is how the sun peeks through the tree.

it’s the morning dew..the clouds, the breeze we feel

and the fact that she is free.”

“In your room she would only sing for you

but unless she is a part

of the sky, the trees, the clouds, the wind…

her song can’t touch your heart.”

I have thought about that moment often

and the importance of being free

for everyone’s hearts deserves to sing…

like that little bird…and me.

MEMORIES: BY DA VINCI & MONET

I love da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, I love to linger with her awhile

enjoying the beauty in her face, the elusiveness of her smile. 

And from the first time I laid eyes on them I’ve loved the paintings of Monet.

I love the subjects, love the impressions, love the way the colors interplay.

I’ve often wondered as we go through life…if this is how memory unveils:

Initially brushed upon our minds like a da Vinci…in detail.

Then over time those fine details seem to blend a little everyday

until, as we grow older, we remember in Monet.

When we first make a memory…we remember it exactly as it appears

but slowly, imperceptibly, those details become less clear.

And the more experiences we add…the more new memories we overlay

before we know it our detailed da Vinci seems to look more like Monet.

But through the the wonder of our memory as these two painting styles converge

from within the impressions of our past…old details will emerge.

And we remember certain facts as if they happened yesterday

until they blend back to impression and gently fade away.

Perhaps it is this blending of the two that makes our memories last

and we are meant to find some small details in our impressions of the past.

Perhaps this is the essence of how we’re designed to see

Perhaps this is the nature of art…

and the beauty of memory.

RESTORING OUR HUMANITY

O say does that star-spangled banner yet wave

O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

When a person, any person, tramples on another person’s human rights

we may see it as bizarre…

but if we stand by and do nothing…we’re no better than they are.

We should be shocked, we should be outraged

We should be speak up…create a fuss

because the rights being trampled are human rights

and they belong to all of us.

When any person’s human rights are denied…

shouldn’t we all agree

that in denying them their human rights…

we deny their humanity?

Because when we see a person any person 

trample another person’s human’s rights….

What they’re doing isn’t human

and it certainly isn’t right.

Now is the time we must look inside our souls

for if we are truly the land of the free

we must, once again, be the home of the brave

and restore our humanity.

LOST

He just buried his wife…amid a trail of tears…

Their good long life together spanning 77 years..

He spoke at her grave and as I watched him…

as the tears of his sadness flowed

I couldn’t help but be captivated 

by the words he there bestowed:

“When I think of my wife….and the life we shared

from the day our paths first crossed

“What stands out in my memory the most,” he said,

 “are all the times that I’ve been lost.”

“All the evenings sleeping by her side, 

every beautiful sunrise

every time I stopped to look at her…

I was lost within her eyes.

I was lost within her smile…within her voice, within her charms…

lost within her laughter, within her sadness…within her arms.

When I think back on our life together, these are the moments I will miss

like all the times throughout our life…I was lost within her kiss…

Now I find myself lost in silence 

with thoughts drifting on about her

and I know until we’re together again

I will be lost without her….”

As the funeral ended, as people departed, as the candles all were dimmed

I found myself hoping one day I too would be lost…

lost in life…

lost in love…

just like him.

WORDS OF LOVE

I believe there is more love than hate in this world

I believe hate…is just overblown.

I believe there is more love than hate in this world

And I believe I’m not alone.

When asked how she creates a love song

The musician quickly replied

I close my eyes…I think about love

And the words awaken from inside.

When asked how he creates a love story

The author was quick to impart.

I close my eyes…I think about love

And the words emerge from within my heart.

When asked how she puts love in her paintings

The artist smiled then quickly blushed

I close my eyes…I think about love

 And love finds its way to my brush.

When asked how he adds love to his figures

The sculptor said as far as I understand

I close my eyes…I think about love

And love finds its way to my hands.

I believe there is a spark of love in all of us

A spark we must continually reclaim

I believe there is a spark of love in all of us

It’s up to us to rekindle its flame.

I know the is true because when I sit down to write a love poem

I close my eyes…I think about love…and I swear

when I open my eyes, there on the paper

words of love are awaiting me there.

THE FRIENDS WE HAD BACK THEN

I noticed my old high school yearbook on the shelf where it has stood

for many years and when I opened it I thought…it smelled like childhood.

Browsing through its pages…much to my delight

I found myself and many old friends…looking good in black and white.

Most of the faces I remember…some I did not know.

Moments captured for eternity from a time long, long ago.

There was Rollie, there was Marilyn, there was me…and Joe and John

We spent many moments together…and then in a moment…we were gone.

Gone on to our futures…wondering what we might find…

excited at the possibilities…grateful for the friends we left behind…

I did not know back then…(I was much too young to see)

how the people in my yearbook…would help determine who I’d be.

I had no way of knowing…(I was as yet unaware)

that I wouldn’t be standing where I am today

If I hand’t been standing there.

Standing with my childhood friends 

friends who somehow found a way

to help transform the boy I was

into the man I am today.

I wonder… isn’t that true for many of us

as we visit our yearbooks once again?

For where would we all be today…

without the friends we had back then.

WHAT MAKES US BEAUTIFUL

Have you ever stopped in the forest…and looked up at the trees…

rising from the Earth…in divine simplicity?

“This tree is so beautiful…as is that one.” you exclaim.

“But what makes the forest beautiful is how no two trees are the same.”

Have you ever stopped under an ebony sky…and looked up at the stars…

the clouds…the constellations…Venus, Jupiter…or Mars?

“This star is so beautiful…as is that one.” you exclaim.

“But what makes the sky so beautiful is how no two stars are the same.”

Have you ever been walking in a garden and stopped to look around

at the individual flowers that populate the ground.

“This flower is so beautiful…as is that one.” you exclaim.

“But what makes the garden beautiful is how no two flowers are the same.”

Each tree, each star, each flower has it’s own beauty when detached…

but when they come together…their beauty is unmatched.

Perhaps nature is trying to show us…there is a reason why…

we should try to see all people like the trees, the flowers, the sky.

Perhaps if we paused a moment and used our eyes too see

we would notice all the people of Earth…in their divine simplicity.

“This person has a beauty all their own…as does that one.” we'd exclaim.

“But what makes the Earth so beautiful is how no two people are the same.”

LITTLE MOMENTS IN BETWEEN

I love the big moments that happen in life…times of celebration…times of mirth…

Birthdays, marriages, family reunions, Christmas’s and births…

These are wonderful moments…moments I don’t wish to demean…

but for me the meaning and the beauty in life 

is found in the little moments in between.

A morning walk, watching the clouds, the changing of the tides…

eating a bowl of cereal with Deborah by my side.

Watching birds come to our feeder, squirrels scurrying up a tree

eating lunch with Michelle and her nieces…at a restaurant…gluten free.

A golf cart ride, a fabric store, seeing the girls smiling faces

as they chose their fabric, took it home…and made two pillow cases.

Eating chocolate, watching you tube, looking T-Rex in the eye…

after spending time together, finding it hard to say goodbye.

It was a day of little moments…no big moments that I’m aware

but in the midst of all these little moments…I found some comfort there.

For I believe these little moments are where living and life coincide…

and where, if we are lucky, joy and happiness reside.

Yes, big moments in life are wonderful…

the big celebrations…the big scenes…

but most of life…

a happy life…

is found in the little moments…

in between.

WHITMAN & BO

If given the chance to meet with God…and have a dialogue

I would first express my thankfulness…for creation of the dog.

We had a dog names Whitman…A golden we got when he was two

I wasn’t sure I wanted a dog at first…but Whitman changed my point of view.

It didn’t take but a moment for my doubtful heart to learn

If I gave him just a little love…so much love he would return.

He would greet me at the door and if I came home angry, bothered or sad

a wag of his tail, his paw on my lap and things didn’t seem so bad.

He loved long walks, chasing balls, running loose and free…

sitting by a mountain stream in the shade of an old oak tree.

He allowed our grandchildren to walk all over him and never made a sound.

A better friend, companion, and confidant…I'm sure could not be found…

There’s something about unconditional love that every dog owner knows

It makes life with them so easy…and so difficult letting go.

If given the chance to speak with God…there’s a second thing I would report

“When you created dogs,” I’d say…”you made their life too short!”

We lost Whitman a while ago…it’s been four years or more

And still there are days when I come home…and expect to see him at our door…

I have a dear friend who lost his dog yesterday…his dog’s name was Bo.

His memories are a lot like mine…he, too, had a hard time letting go…

And though it doesn’t make it any easier…there’s a void you can’t repair…

I like to think when Bo get’s to heaven…Whitman will be waiting there..

And they will play in the clouds together, chasing balls and chewing bones

knowing, despite the friends they left behind,…they’ll never be alone. 

I know one day we’ll be reunited with them,

and Greg, if you’re the first to go…

look out for Whitman till I get there…

And if it’s me…I’ll do the same for Bo.

FOOTPRINTS IN THE SAND

A morning stroll along the beach, just the two of us, walking hand in hand

when I found myself enchanted by all the footprints in the sand.

Oh it was beautiful how the sun met the water and the water met the land

but I couldn’t help but wonder about all those footprints in the sand.

They came in all shapes and sizes…they were everywhere I scanned…

an endless overlap of footprints…blended together in the sand

I had no way of ever knowing…who made these footprints in the sand.

If they were made by someone young or old…by a woman or a man.

What was their religion?  Were they from here or some other land?

These I could not ascertain from their footprints in the sand.

And I wondered if all we had to judge people by were their footprints in the sand

perhaps there’d be no prejudices…no one would be ridiculed or banned.

And the world could live in harmony…like the footprints I saw today

before tomorrow’s tide comes rushing in and washes them away…

MORE MOMENTS OF CONTENTMENT

Life oftentimes moves so quickly and follows its own plan

That we must cherish moments of contentment where and when we can.

Moments of reflection…moments we hold dear

Moments entrusted to our heart…before they disappear.

Such moments can be discovered while alone, 

on the shore beside the sea,

in the pages of a book,

or in the midst of family.

Today I captured a moment with my grandchildren

In a bowling alley during an afternoon rainfall…

where we listened to the thunder…

and threw our share of gutter balls…

Amid the joy and laughter in such an unexpected time and place

this moment of contentment put a smile on my face.

And I thought how moments like this are temporary

and because each day I grow a little older

how I’ve learned to cherish when these moments

alight upon my shoulders….

Which is why I stop to enjoy these moments as they quietly cascade… 

for it is in these moments of contentment where memories are made.

And knowing, once these moments have passed,

I’ve captured the memory

means I have a way to keep that moment alive

for all eternity.