BEFORE THE SIREN FADES AWAY

We heard the siren before we saw it…an ambulance coming our way

and we hoped for a miracle for the person inside…

That is…until the siren faded away.

For you see we did not know the person

and it only troubled our day…

for a moment..

just an instant

until the siren faded away.

In that instant we wondered what might have happened

what threw their world into disarray?

But we quickly forgot about them

when the siren faded away.

And I thought how sad we are so detached from one another

It is a sign of the times in our world today…

We are wistful, at first, when tragedy strikes another

but lose sight of them when the siren fades away.

We have forgotten how we are all one family

I hope that all will change one day…

and we will care about each other

even after the siren fades away…

So now when I hear the siren

of an ambulance coming my way

I will still hope for a miracle for the person inside 

before the siren fades away…

But in a world that is so divided

disconnected in many ways

I will also be praying for a second miracle

before the siren fade away.

SHE CAME TO THE MOUNTAINS

She came to the mountains because she was lost

filled with anxiety and doubt…

She couldn’t remember who she was..

She came to the mountains to find out.

And it wasn’t long before she found herself…

She found her kindness in the breeze.

She found her beauty in the flowers.

She found her strength among the trees.

Her imagination she found floating in the clouds,

and it did not take her long

in the bees to find her determination…

in the birds to find her song.

She found her courage and humility

in the rivers and the streams.

She found her kindness, her compassion

and forgiveness in her dreams.

Before she knew it she was lost no more.

Her optimism had returned…

awakened by all she had re-discovered…

by everything she had re-learned…

For she learned this simple lesson

taught by the mountains on her climb…

that all those things she thought she’d lost

were with her all the time.

Now each day she rediscovers

as her days about to start…

who she is by searching the mountains

in her soul 

and 

in her heart.

ONE DAY

One day her daughter ran to her…her face was filled with tears.

She held her close not knowing…if it was sadness…pain…or fear.

One day she didn’t ask what had caused her tears to stir…

Instead she softly sang a song…a song her mother sang to her.

One day her daughter heard that song …and while nestled in her mother’s arms

felt free from sadness, free from fear…free from suffering and harm.

One day she will remember the song that made her heartache go away.

And she will sing it to her daughter…

when she runs to her…

one day

SO DO I

On their 50th anniversary I was curious

so I asked them, what sparked their love and why…

“When I looked at her I saw my future.” Grandpa said…

Grandma grabbed his hand and nodded…

“That’s funny…so did I.”

“And even after 50 years,” she continued,

“I still see my future when I look into his eyes.”

Grandpa grabbed her hand and nodded

“Isn’t that funny….so do I.”

I DO BELIEVE IN MIRACLES

I heard about a miracle the other day that brought a smile to the faces

of anyone who read of it…on Facebook…of all places…

It was a story about a little girl on a ventilator…in a hospital’s ICU

with her family surrounding her…unsure of what to do…

Unsure what was happening…unsure of who or what or when…

Unsure if she could hear them now…or would ever hear again.

When her mom leaned over and whispered into her ear

hoping her message would penetrate every chromosome,

reassuring her daughter that her family would be standing by

until she was ready to come home…

It was here Mom said she felt the faintest pressure 

her daughter’s thumb onto her hand…

just the slightest pressure sending waves

into her mom…across the land…

For anyone out there who read of it

Here’s a little quiz…

If that was not a miracle…please tell me then…

what is?

Sometimes I am amazed in life

how miracles overlap

for that same day we saw a baby

lying in his father’s lap.

We spoke to the young couple for a while

remembering how fast our children and grandchildren have grown

remembering back to when we were blessed

with miracles of our own…

And I couldn’t help thinking about miracles

how in our lives they play a roll

how perhaps they’re always near us

in the silence of our souls…

And how it’s true some miracles we experience 

may be sent from up above…

But I also believe some miracles

float in on the wings of love.

NATIONAL DONUT DAY 2018

June 1st 2018 was National Donut Day and we thought nothin’ would be fina’

Than to hit the 5 best donuts shops in Asheville….Carolina.

So four of us jumped into our car and we headed on our way

My first donut was warm and fresh…they called it a beignet.

Second donut was a maple and blueberry cake I picked hot off of the shelf

I thought this donut was much too big…that I ought to pace myself.

But before I knew it I looked down at the plate in front of me

and my donut was gone…I had eaten all…it was on to number three.

The third place we stopped had already sold out…

Needless to say we were bereft…

so we bought the biggest cookie on the rack

thanked them…then we left.

By now it had been a few minutes without a donut

our taste buds were ablaze…

quenched by the next  donut: 

with a hint of graham cracker

and a wonderful key lime glaze.

We were starting to slow down a little

by the time we reached our last stop..

Still I found room for one large donut.

It had fermented pineapple on top!

Here I listened to my three companions

Who by now I had no doubt

After a morning of donut eating

Were thoroughly donut-ed out…

And I thought on National Donut Day nothin’ could be fina’

Than a donut tour with good friends here in Asheville…Carolina

And I smiled as I listened to their laughter

but my thoughts had gone astray

I was already making plans for December….

the 15th is Cupcake Day.

SNOWFLAKES

(As I watch what’s happening in this country and around the world,

I see the evilness and I think…people…BEWARE!

So let me express in my words the words of François-Marie Aroue…

you may know him as Voltaire.)

When we see injustice and prejudice and hatred

and only say that we abhor it…

when we see people causing others pain 

and do nothing but ignore it.

Then we are like a snowflake in an avalanche

that doesn’t hold itself accountable…

and the problem we are facing…

is truly insurmountable.