Awaken

Between the soft billows

Of grey clouds upon the horizon,

A soul-piercing beam

Of red-hot sunlight

Pokes its face out

To say hello.

“Wake up!” it calls

To sleepy heads,

Closed minds,

Closed hearts.

“Have mercy!” it pleads.

Deep down, there is compassion.

Beneath the rough-hewn shell,

There is a being

Formed in the image of God.

One Person at a Time

If all lives

Meant as much to us as some lives,

If all races, faces, accents, religions, persuasions,

Meant as much to us as our own,

Perhaps this world would be a happier, more peaceful, more spiritual

Place to be. But, it is not

That kind of world.

It is a world where we look out

For our own, those like us,

Those who think and act like we do.

We see it as a waste of time, energy and resources,

To worry about those who don’t concern us,

Those in whom we are not invested.

“Why should I care?” we say to ourselves, to each other, to those who

Keep us accountable.

“It’s not my job!”

“They are trash!”

“They are criminals!”

“They have no respect!”

“They don’t appreciate what they have!”

“I don’t have to go out of my way to help them!”

There has got to be a solution.

There has to be a way

For us all to get along,

To have love and respect for each other,

To live together in peace.

We can do it, one person at a time.

Follow the Spirit

Contradictions amidst the scriptures

Make religions fall to their knees,

While spirits laugh and dance a jig,

Singing melodies in our ears.

Should we listen to the wisdom

That our traditions tell us to?

Or maybe step onto the water,

As Jesus calls us to only trust him?

Faith is not a concrete thing.

It lives and breathes.

It moves constantly.

To align ourselves with God’s spirit

Is to step out into the unknown.

There is no certainty with God.

We cannot know all the answers,

So why judge others

Who are different from us?

Though they follow a different path,

Perhaps they walk with God as well.

We will never know where they’re headed.

Not until the end of time.

So, just love others as Jesus called us.

Lay down your burdens at the riverside.

Take each step in fear and trembling,

For you know not what tomorrow brings.

Trust the Father to guide you through it,

And the Son, to wipe away your sins.

You are loved, no matter what,

And forgiven, for all time.

So follow the spirit, as it guides you.

Bless as many as you can!

Searching for Truth

Twisting, turning, inside out.

Realms unreachable confuse and tease.

Mysteries unfathomable drift on by.

Can you grasp God’s intellect?

I think not.

Do you know his truth?

You will not know until you see him

Face to face.

You will not have the answers,

Any answers, until it doesn’t matter.

God doesn’t work

The way that gives you control.

He is like a refreshing breeze

That blows through the window,

Moving so that you know

Something is there,

Something beautiful,

Yet, you cannot use it

For your own purposes.

He will not boost your ego.

He will not make you look good.

He will confound you.

He will stay one step ahead of you,

Evading all your well-meant plans.

How we wish God would do our will,

Yet it is we who must do his.

The only prayer God answers is,

“Thy will be be done.”

Anything else is a process,

Simply meant to bring us to that point.

His words are always,

“Follow me.”

And so we search and search,

Yet he eludes us.

Finally, we surrender our will to his,

Trusting in his love.

It is then that we have found him.

Alone (2010)

Headed straight,

But I turned to the side.

I ride the motion

From deep inside.

Gliding along,

No end in sight–

Just me and my dreams

Flying tonight.

Through the darkness

And under the light.

My worries captured

And shown in sight.

No escape comes

From this lofty flight

Only conflict, terror…

My chest is tight.

Suffocating

From this journey.

No relief

Comes from my plea.

Clouds surround

My hooded eyes.

I hear no sound

On this frigid night.

Nothing grows,

Nothing comes

Close to those

Who care some-

-Thing about me.

I am alone.

Only me,

Screaming, “No!”

Send a friend.

Send a friend.

I have no friends.

They are all fiends.

Only me,

Sitting here,

Wondering why.

I ask myself,

Why am I here?

Do I know?

I don’t know.

Do you?

I am alone.

There is no one here

But me.

I sit on a ledge

Of a dark chasm,

Looking down.

Seems like forever,

And then I am there

At the bottom,

Looking up.

Where are they?

Where is my savior?

Where did he go?

Or did I leave him?

Where am I?

Am I alone?

Did I turn my back

On anyone else?

Why am I here,

Alone?

Such a mystery

To me, so lonely.

I lay here,

Sores on my body.

Emptiness in my soul.

Alone.

Mouses*

Escape into the maze

Of mouses who hide

From misfortune in

Their little houses

Inside the walls.

You never know

They’re there because

They are oh so quiet

In their mousey manner,

And oh so cozy

In their mouse house.

They have all the

Tasty crumbs of

Bread and cheese, nicely

Sized for their little

Mouths, and oh how

Tasty it is when

They eat and eat

To their hearts content,

All cozy and comfy

Inside the walls.

*(2010-2011)

In the Dead of Night*

Dreams gather

In my head

As in a shotgun

Full of lead.

They want to fill me

With bad thoughts,

Things to scare me:

Oughts and noughts.

Dreams, they wait

Behind a wall

To judge my gait

And cause my fall.

They want to catch me

Unawares.

They want to bring me

Ugly nightmares.

Dreams do come

Whether I like it

Or not–they come,

Knowing I can’t fight it.

So, here I lay

In the dark, afraid

That when I close

My eyes, and compose

Myself to the torture

Of dreams gone askance

Of Mother Nature,

Suddenly a lance

Will be driven deep

Into my heart.

Yes, that’s the part

I dread.

*(Written 2010-2011)