TWINS

I was born and raised in Twinsburg, Ohio…the city known for twins…

So whenever I hear a story about them…I have to listen in…

Two four year old girls from Miami…as different as night and day

hail from two unconnected families…but say they’re twins in every way.

They’ve been friends since they were two years old…true their birthdays are two days apart…

but they believe they are each other’s twin…in their souls and in their hearts.

Here’s a little cautionary note…if you don’t want to ‘take one on the chin’

Don’t tell these girls, who aren’t even sisters, there’s no way they can be twins.

“Oh, yes we are!” They smile…and simultaneously respond….

And who are we to assume we understand…their special kind of bond.

If we were to prove to these two girls they’ve not been twin sisters all along…

although we might be scientifically correct…I believe in principle…we’d be wrong.

Given the similar way we humans are born…the way we’re all created…

Is it that hard to believe, as these two girls have shown, that we are all related?

We don’t need actual genetic proof that you’re my sister…you’re my brother

every human on this planet is related to each other.

We could learn a lesson from these two four year olds …

Their innocent wisdom we should extol…

They’ve ignored their differences in appearance…

and found a connection in their souls.

Wouldn’t the world be a wonderful place to live…Imagine the love that would arise

If we all possessed the capability…of seeing the world through these little girls eyes?

Hate might finally be defeated…love would win…and win…and win

If everywhere we looked in life…we found another twin …

It’s true what they say about children…of this there is no doubt…

When we try to teach them all about life…

they teach us…what life is all about!

TWO PHOTOS

Two photos of two people…taken as World War II began

The woman…was quite beautiful…and handsome was the man.

Two people I would come to know…two photos my brother had…

Two photos of the man and woman who would become my mom and dad. 

Two photos taken years ago in two long forgotten places

Two photos of them smiling…was that youth upon their faces?

Two faces filled with promise…I wonder…what were they like before…

before I came to know them…before they both were called to war.

Before they witnessed death and bloodshed…before the holocaust…

Before Dad’s hearing was affected and Mom’s innocence was lost…

Two photos of two people who never talked about the war…

Were they frightened? Were they brave?

Two photos of two people…who took their stories to their graves…

So many questions go unanswered…and remain unanswered forevermore

So many family histories altered…a sad casualty of war.

Two photos of two people…two photos I’ve never seen before…

I wonder: what would their lives have been like…if there never was a war?

Two photos of Mom and Dad in their uniforms…

like so many photos from long ago…

How different would our world have been?

Another question goes unanswered…for that…

we’ll never know.

WHEN OUR VETERANS RETURN

The day to honor veterans has come and gone…but shouldn’t we find a way

as the country who sent them off to fight…to honor them every day? 

These are not just soldiers going off to war…they’re our sisters and our bothers…

They’re our friends, our neighbors, our children

They’re our fathers…and our mothers.

And we have to know…as they walk away…and we lovingly whisper their name…

that soldier heading off to war…will not come back the same.

Because war is never easy…it is chaotic, grisly…deranged

and everybody comes back wounded…everyone comes back changed.

Families know there are two times we hold our soldiers the tightest

A lesson our country should learn…

The first is the day they go off to war…

the second…the day they return. 

There is another lesson about war and soldiers…our country needs to learn:

The same country that sent their soldiers to fight…

must not abandon them when they return.

Every day, not just Veterans Day, we should strive to make their futures bright

We must spend as much money welcoming them home

As we did when we sent them to fight.

We must remember and celebrate and help our veterans every day…

A third lesson our country must learn…

There should be as much joy in their hearts…as there is in ours

when our veterans return!

Congress…spend whatever it takes…show them the respect they all have earned…

And help put as much joy back in their lives…as there was when they left…

when our veterans return.

HOW DO WE THANK YOU?

On the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918 our country stood defended .

That is the day peace returned to the world…the day the war to end all wars had ended.

It became known as Armistice Day and in 1919…took it’s place in our country’s lore

until the name was changed to Veterans Day…in 1954.

They defended our country in the air, on the sea, on the ground, on foot…and in tanks

and since 1918 we’ve been trying to show our gratitude…trying to show our thanks.

So how do we thank those who served and are serving for paying such a burdensome price…

How do we thank our veterans…for their service and sacrifice?

We can smile, pat them on the back…shake their hands…let them know we’re safer than before…

and though thanking them is wonderful…as a country…we must do more.

We must read our constitution…we could write a veteran a note…

thanking him or her for their service and telling them we’ll vote…

Telling them we’ll get involved and on the next election day…

we’ll ensure the rights they fought for on the battlefield…will never be taken away.

When we send our soldiers off to war…when we ask them to attack…

we must guarantee they will be taken care of when they finally make it back…

We must do everything in our power…all their needs…it’s up to us to meet…

No veteran who has fought for their country should end up living on the street!

Men and women, black and white, their genders…don’t ask…don’t tell

It matters not their labels when we send them off to hell.

In fact when they sign up for our military…when we send them into enemy fire,

when they put their lives on the line for us…SOLDIER is the only label they require.

When we send them off to fight…when all over the world they scatter

wouldn’t it be nice to know when they return…their other labels do not matter.

We must never forget their sacrifice or what they’re fighting for…

and it’s up to us to help heal their wounds and the scars they incur in war.

Perhaps living a life that is meaningful…and teaching our children how to live

on this Veterans Day (and every day) is the best thanks we can give.

THE UNICORN

Of all the books her dad read to her from the time when she was born

His favorite to read and her favorite to hear were stories of unicorns.

They believed in the sparkle of the unicorn…they believed in her magical tune

they dreamed of some day jumping on her back…and riding her to the moon.

They believed in the unicorn’s magic…they believed that magic would last forever…

and when the little girl got sick…they would need that magic more than ever.

Her parents were sad and angry…they didn’t know what to do..

When the little girl asked “Do unicorns get sick?” Can they get leukemia too?”

“We’ve never read a story like that.” Dad said…”I’m not sure if it’s known…”

The little girl sat straight up and said, “Let’s write a story of our own.”

And so they did.

Their unicorn was white and pure…filled with beauty, brains and glory…

And each night before she fell asleep they'd add a chapter to their story…

The unicorn flew to new places each night…across the universe she’d dart…

Enjoying wild adventures…dreamed up in a little girl’s heart… 

And when her dad would read them back to her…as he silently began to weep

His daughter would smile…close her eyes…and quietly drift to sleep.

When he tucked her in he would touch her face…he’d brush away a curl…

For he knew their unicorn would live forever…but not so his little girl.

One night they stopped their writing…her story ending much too soon…

It was the night she jumped on the unicorn’s back…and rode her to the moon.

MOMENTS LIKE THIS

Yesterday we volunteered at Ava’s school…at its annual jog-a-thon

The sun was shining and clouds dotted the sky…as we stood upon the lawn.

Music was blaring from loud speakers…playing a host of popular tunes

when Ava’s class arrived on the scene…a little after noon.

Ava jogged a couple laps…she was running steady, fast and strong

but when she decided to walk the next lap…

I decided to walk along.

We talked about frivolous things…and sometimes…we didn’t talk at all.

As we spent this moment together…I thought…when did she get so tall?

I remember thinking as we walked along together…

taking this moment to reminisce

how life is made up of simple moments ….

Simple…yet wonderful moments like this.

Moments that may not seem like much…

as we gossip about school or talk about the weather

But moments that are truly special…

because they’re moments we spend together…

We learn to hold dear these moments 

we learn to treasure everything about them…

Because any moment spent with the people we love

surpasses any moment spent without them…

So…if you have a chance to spend time with someone you love

By all means take the time and spend it…

And you have a chance to take a walk with your granddaughter

I would very much recommend it!

Because life is made up of moments like this

And it would behoove us all to learn…

Once a moment like this is over…

It’s over…

never to return.

SOMETIMES...YOU JUST GOTTA DANCE!

The children’s choir was standing by…waiting for their cue to sing

When one little girl began to feel the music…and immediately started to swing.

The other children stood straight and tall…pictures of solemnity and grace

But when the music enveloped this one little girl…joy lit up her face.

And then came the transformation…it started in her feet…

they started moving on their own…tapping to the beat.

It quickly moved up to her hips for the more the music played

Her hands began to move and clap and those hips…began to sway.

The other children concentrated on their singing…

none of them gave this girl a glance 

She didn’t seem to notice her choir mates either 

as she sang and bobbed and danced.

There is beauty in the fluid way the music entered this girls soul

and transformed her simple two step into full-blown rock and roll.

In a time when bloodshed, hatred and evil seems excessively intense

It’s nice to remember the charm and the purity of a child’s wide-eyed innocence.

It’s nice to remember the America we love…it’s nice to take the chance

to ignore the suffering…for a little while…and watch a little girl dance.