Friendship

Friendship: nothing more
And nothing less than giving
what another needs most

Whether that's a game,
Movie, listening ear, or
Comforting arms, words

Sublimation

Sublimation is such an interesting word, don't you think?  It has so many meanings:
1) the act of passing directly from the solid to the vapor state

2) elevation especially in dignity or honor

3) the act of refining something-- in purity or excellence

4) the conversion of something inferior into something of higher worth

5) changing the expression of an impulse from its unacceptable form to one that is acceptable

How many of those apply here?

Get me out of my mind
Put Your will there
Get me out of my heart
Put Your love there
Get me out of my deeds
And work through me
So I can be Your hands,
Be Your feet
Hear Your thoughts,
With Your voice, speak
Focusing only on
What You seek

Death

Misery: to lack
That which made you happy--
Irretrievably

Birth

Joy: to hold in arms
Someone unique, precious
The first time you meet

Lost Child

Fear: lost in blizzard,
I may never relocate
The one flake I made

Law & Order: Special Victims Unit

Tears in my eyes
I wonder
How anyone can watch this
And not have their
Heart shatter
 
Knowing this
Probably has happened
Could be happening
 
Because even though
The disclaimer says,
"Fiction"
Humanity's depravity
Is real

Multi-Haiku Journey

Looked into the night:

Searched for how I can do right.

Found the source of light!

Who is this light-source?

Why, it’s Christ the King, of course,

Astride his white horse.

Hail the conq’ring king!

He’s the Lord of ev’rything.

Reason why we sing:

 

Honor his glory,

And tell the world his story

(Although it’s gory).

 

Upon a cross, he died

Blood spurting out of his side

Turning back the tide

 

His body riven

Now the sins were forgiven

When he stopped livin’

 

God came to our aid

All our crimes’ penalty paid

In a tomb, he laid

 

On Easter morn,

We learned we don’t need to mourn.

For our hope was born

 

As Jesus arose!

From the dead, God’s Son arose!

To heaven he goes

 

To prepare for us.

Someday we’ll join our Jesus,

Who we’ll always trust.

Kitchen Table

A place to set
Nieces' birthday presents
Tools and spare light bulbs
Candles and craft projects
Piles of box tops and books
 
There's no space there
For any kind of food
This is my table;
My recliner is where I eat 

Love

This is probably the oldest poem that I have saved anywhere... it was written as an assignment for English class at the beginning of my sophomore year of high school.  Back in 1998.

It’s a quiet time, enjoying each other’s presence.
It’s a noisy time, playing games and letting the other person win.
It’s a happy time, laughing and snitching fudge.
It can exist in sad times, a quiet friend to hold and listen.
 
What is this stuff we call love, really?
It’s a river of peace,
It’s compassion and grace,
It’s helping hands,
It’s a smiling face,
It’s speaking your mind,
But knowing your place.
 
Love is the thing that draws us together,
Making families out of strangers.
Stronger than any stormy weather,
Holding fast through all dangers,
Come what may, I’ll always love you.

I Just Can't Fight the Feeling

And I just can't fight the feeling
That there's something I'm forgetting
I just can't burn away
The fog of doubt       
That clouds my soul

And I just can't fight the feeling
That there's someone out there waiting
Waiting for me
But I'm not there
And they're left out in the cold

And I just can't fight the feeling
That there's something that I'm missing
And even though I'm list'ning
I still can't hear
The message whole

And I just can't fight the feeling
That there's someone out there waiting
Waiting for me
To ask for help
So they can take me home

And I just can't help believing
Even though I know it's nonsense
That even when
I'm lost and cold
Someone loves me still
Someone wants me to come home

Quinzaine 1

In a single cell, Life is.

Who will value it?

Protect it?

I See Truth

I see truth in answers of
Just one syllable
A yes or no, not a maybe so
That's the truth, time will tell

I see black and white
As well as shades of gray
I see wrong and right
And we can't do it everybody's way

I see heaven reaching down
To help the ones who are unable
Through the ones who look around
And do what they can

I feel freedom in every blade of grass
I hear beauty in a chirping sparrow
I see life in just a single cell
Needless death chills my marrow

Lying to Myself

Why is it
That I think
Lying to myself
Is somehow okay?
 
When I talk to others,
I insist on them
Being honest with me
And sometimes
I get in trouble for
Subjecting them
To my sometimes-brutal
Honesty
 
Even on facebook
When taking
All those silly quizzes
At the end
When they ask for
My reaction to my result
I feel compelled
To write the absolute truth
Even when I
Am of two minds
On the subject
 
And yet
This person
Who says she values truth
Has no problem
Telling herself
Those jeans don’t really
Look THAT bad
Or “One more
Scoop of ice cream
Isn’t going to
Make MUCH difference”
Or “It doesn’t matter
If I just slack off
For an hour
Or even a day.”
 
Even when I know it’s
Not true.
 
I just can’t seem to STOP
Myself
From lying to me.

Like A Gentle Breeze

Like a gentle breeze
Felt, but unheard and unseen
Is my one true love
 
Like a warm blanket
Wrapping me in soft comfort
Is my one true love
 
Like a melody
Tenderly played in moonlight
Is my one true love
 
Like a soft snowflake
Perfect yet one of a kind
Is my one true love
 
Like a setting sun
Beautif’ly untouchable
Is my one true love
 
Like whispers unheard
But felt deep within my heart
Is my one true love
 
My one true love is far away
I’ll find my love somewhere, someday
And with me He’ll always stay
Forever my one true love

Mermaids

Where humpbacks sing
Mermaids frolic in the sea
Dancing among the waves
Next to the whales and me
Paddling their flippers
Their eyes gazing rapturously
And darting from fish to fish
To coral to anemone

Where volcanoes sleep

Mermaids come ashore
Falling to velvet sand
Amid soft citrus and salt scents
Seaweed on their backs
Sighing into sweet dreams
As the gentle evening sun
Gives a good-night kiss
 
A mermaid is carried home
To where family waits:
Flippers are peeled off
My sleeping mermaid
And she’s awakened
For a warm shower,
Grilled cheese sandwiches,
And a bowl of tomato soup
 
Where my mermaid swims
As she smiles in her sleep
I don’t know.
But wherever she is
I hope she tells me tomorrow

Magnetic Poetry 2

Is it You?
My big love to the rescue
 
Fix my problems
Obliterate me
As you save
 
Integrate us
So I am new

Metaphor Prayer

Lord,
Make my life an MP3 player
With only one song to play
Let that song repeat forever
And let it be
Your song
 
Lord,
Make my life a car
Driven by another’s
Will and skill
And let it be
Your will
 
Lord,
Make my life a computer
Busily doing
The tasks assigned
And let them be
Your tasks
 
Lord,
I want to sublimate myself
Recreate my life
Losing my distractions
To follow only
You

Magnetic Poetry 1

Note:  This is the kind of wacko poem you write on the fridge at midnight with the words Best Buy gives you....

Mission Control!!!

I Hate
my computer
 
system crashed
eradicating important files
inside the laptop
 
Spyware?
Hacker?
Virus?
 
Shall I
slam a sledgehammer?
take a chainsaw to it?
or use a Japanese sword on it?
 
THAT would solve my throbbing headache . . .
 
Tech Support, that you?
 
About Time.

More Like a Rock

Lord, my Prayer today

Is that you’ll help me to be

More of a chip off Your old block.

I guess from reading Scripture,

This is what that means:

Make me more like a rock.

Lord, You’re the Firm Foundation,

So keep me grounded please,

Help me spend more time on my knees

So when I plan, when I build

It’s to your specs and

Won’t get washed to sea.

Lord, You’re the Rock of Ages,

So please help me to be

Shelter for others in life’s storm.

Your Word says You’re a fortress,

So please help me to protect

And to keep them warm.

  

Lord, You’re the Stone of Stumbling,

If men refuse the truth

So help me keep my eyes on you.

Help me not get bent out of shape

If people don’t see things my way

You were the first Rock of Offense.

Lord, You are the Cornerstone,

My hope is found in You alone

For you are the Keystone that I need

Only You can help me

Fit my life together

And make my soul complete

Lord, You are a Mountain

Growing day by day

So let me run to you, I pray

And let me help in my small ways

And my honor flow to you

May your glory fill the whole earth soon.

Lonely Sock

One white sock

Dirty and crumpled

Deserted under the slide

Half-full of sand

Not the first thing I see,

Here in the park

But it is the image

The picture in my head

As I drive away

I don’t think of

The dandelions and skunkweed

I don’t think of

The empty swings

I don’t think of

The deserted slides

Just that sock

And it seems to me

The sock is just like the playground

Once full

Now empty and forgotten

(Riding in the Back of) My Grandpa’s Pickup Truck

a song

Looking back through my memory

I remember how it used to be

As we all went down to Sandy Hollow

Dive from the platform, play in the sands,

Catch a li’l animal in our hands

And when the sun went home we all would follow—

Riding in the back of my grandpa’s pickup truck

With the sun on my face, the wind in my hair,

I hadn’t a worry, I hadn’t a care.

It always seemed like a stroke of the greatest luck

When I could ride back home

In the back of that old truck.

Sometimes we’d go and pick sweet corn

When we had enough, Grandpa’d honk the horn

We’d sit next to piles of corn in that pickup bed

Clean that corn, have us a ball,

Maybe even make a cornhusk doll,

And at Gramma’s house we were always very well-fed.

Riding in the back of my grandpa’s pickup truck

With the sun on my face, the wind in my hair,

I hadn’t a worry, I hadn’t a care.

It always seemed like a stroke of the greatest luck

When I could ride back home

In the back of that old truck.

Now time has passed, and I’ve grown up,

But I miss riding in Grandpa’s truck,

Wish that I could do it one more time—

Riding in the back of my grandpa’s pickup truck

With the sun on my face, the wind in my hair,

I hadn’t a worry, I hadn’t a care.

It always seemed like a stroke of the greatest luck

When I could ride back home

In the back of that old truck.

Thanks, Grandpa.

Heaven

I imagine heaven
To be like Gramma's house:
Plenty of company, plenty to eat,
Plenty to do inside and out.
There'll be four-wheelers to ride
With a squealing niece
Scrabble games to play
Word by word, piece by piece
There'll be teasing and laughter on everyone's part
Family pitching in with a loving, giving heart
There'll be advice given, stories shared
And a piano bench if we run out of chairs
You're always welcome, no matter the time
And time spent there is truly sublime

Heaven's Touch (Because Me Savior Loves Me)

a song

I woke up this morning

To Heaven's kiss
Before I even opened my eyes
A song was on my lips
For the love of Heaven
Has changed my life so much
My life on earth is sweet and full
Because of Heaven's touch
 
Because my Savior loves me
He loves me even still
Because my Savior loves me
And I'm striving to walk in His will
Because my Savior loves me
And my Judge sees only Him
The only One to walk upon
This earth without a sin
 
Because my Savior loves me
He loves me even still
Because my Savior loves me
And I'm striving to walk in His will
Because my Savior loves me
And my Judge sees only Him
All my shame is gone today
I'm freely forgiven
 
Because my Savior loves me
He loves even me
Because my Savior loves me
He loves me faithfully
Because my Savior loves me
He loves me, oh, so much!
My life on earth is sweet and full
Because of Heaven's touch

Grandma

Every time I see her actions,
I see a life of giving.
Every time I hear her speak,
I hear honesty and wisdom.
Every time she opens a hymnal,
I rejoice with her in song.
Every time she lifts her face to heaven
And closes her eyes,
I am moved by her faith.
Every time she hugs me,
Every time she has me over for lunch,
Every time she kicks my butt at Scrabble,
I feel her love.

3552 400th Street

It seems kind of silly
To miss the flowerbeds,
To miss the yard
Where I chased the dog,
To miss the dandelions
I'd pull up to earn nickels.
 
It seems kind of silly
To miss the tree
I’d play in during summer,
To miss the garden
Where I’d help pick yummy food,
To miss the clothesline,
And the overalls blowing in the wind.
 
It seems kind of silly
To miss the old ramp
That we only ever used for shooting things off of,
To miss the crick
Where I sailed zucchini boats,
To miss the path through the cornfield
Where I rode the four-wheeler over the bumps
And held on to a squealing niece.
 
It seems kind of silly
To miss the garage workshop
The boys' domain, Grandpa their chief
To miss the golf cart,
To miss the tools, the tinkering,
That brought so many smiles
To beloved faces.
 
It seems kind of silly
To miss the house
With its three guest rooms,
To miss the wrought-iron
That said "Bidwell",
To miss the upstairs closet filled with blankets—
The perfect place to hide and seek,
Even when you got caught right away.
 
It seems kind of silly
To miss the porch
Where Grandma and Grandpa used to sit
And rock in the glider with their coffee;
To miss the table where we played
Our Sunday Scrabble games;
To miss the bang-bang shoot-‘em-ups
In the background as we talked.
 
It seems kind of silly to miss all that;
After all, it’s only a house.
But that house sure seems like a part of me—
A place made up of good memories.

Escape (into Fantasy)

Every time it happened
I'd escape into fantasy
Forget about my body
And set my mind free
 
When my brother used me,
I'd ignore his lips and hands
Disconnect from my body
And fly to distant lands
 
Because as long as I was Lessa,
I didn't have to feel the shame.
As long as I was Sara,
I could imagine away the pain.
 
As long as I was Lucy,
I'd have tea and cakes and music
As long as I was Leia,
I had the force and I could use it.
 
And when a date turned ugly,
I did the same thing too
Let my mind escape my body
In the only way I knew

Yes, this used to be the way

I saved my life and sanity
And yet I feel guilty
For my escapes into fantasy
 
I should've fought back
I should've run away
I should've told someone
I never should've let my body stay
 

 * Author's note: the characters referenced are: Lessa, from Anne McCaffrey's Dragonriders of Pern books; Sara, from Frances Hodgeson Burnett's A Little Princess; Lucy, from C.S. Lewis's The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe; and Princess Leia of George Lucas's Star Wars.

First-Star Dreams

Something old, because I'm behind...

Star light, star bright,
First star I see tonight
I wish I may, I wish I might
Have the wish I wish tonight

Goodnight, my Someone,
Good night, my Love,
Sweet dreams be yours if dreams there be
I wish I may,  and  I wish I might
Now, good night, my Someone, goodnight!

Sleeping talks
Sleeping desires
Sleeping laughs
Sleeping fires
All the first-star dreams are sleeping

Sleeping songs
Sleeping games
Sleeping babies
Wishful names
All the first-star dreams are sleeping

Wake up, wake up!
Where is the man
Who stirs these dreams into truth?

I don't yet know,
And so...
And so...
All the first-star dreams are sleeping.

Endearing Words

“Wanna game of cards?” makes my heart race
But “Sing with me.” is a close second place.
 
“Please” is one short wonderful word,
And “Thank You” never sounds absurd.
 
“Read with me!” “Have fun!” and “I’ll see you soon!”
“God bless you!” I’d wish to hear every afternoon.
 
“You Rock!” is a favorite exclamation
And “Sweet!” ties you to my own generation.
 
Any words that cause laughter will endear you to me—
‘Cause I’m not really that hard to please, you see.
 
But the very best thing that could come from your heart
Should have an “I love you!” at the end, or the start.

Kindness Is The Rain

Kindness is the rain
that melts the frozen loam
dissolves the ice and snow
of apathy
that coats our fertile souls
drawing forth new growth
thoughts and ideas
spring up like snowdrops

ground hunt

a steptolet

creep

ever closer
with stealthy limbs
hunt bull
arrow:
be swift!
get bull meat

Kaelyn & Adelyn

I wrote this clerihew in honor of their first birthday-- but it ended up a day late.

There's nobody cuter than Kaelyn

Except maybe Adelyn, her identical twin

My neices have found something they like to share:

And with two in the swing, there's no room to spare!