One of my favorite Garth Brooks tunes, covered by podline66 aka Larry. Enjoy!
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Every now and then April 15, 2012
the truth about motherhood April 14, 2012
At the moment, I’m thinking about The Cat Years…
.
Giving birth
to all the dreams
of a future,
a blessing
longed for,
imagined
named
years—
decades—
before.
Happiness
held tightly
and blinking brown eyes
sleepily from a blanket
tightly wrapped into
a cocoon of possibility.
.
Walking away,
snarling and critical,
bored and irritated,
cynical.
Mocking talents,
unappreciative of
sacrifices made,
opportunities given.
.
Kindnesses
rebuffed,
communication
ignored,
considerations
declined.
.
Mocking the dreams
and the sweet scent of
hope that lingered
in the folds of
new skin
wrapped tightly
with what we thought
was happiness.
.
Possibility is a
far more pleasant
contemplation
than reality.
waiting April 13, 2012
“Patience is virtue.”
“Time mends all things.”
Yes, yes.
But John Dryden warned in 1680,
“Beware the fury of a patient man.”
Because even the stretchiest elastic
will break when stretched too far.
Still
St. Augustine advised,
“Patience is the companion of wisdom. ”
So, I am fighting
to be wise.
write on the page
“We will open the book. Its pages are blank. We are going to put words on them ourselves. The book is called Opportunity and its first chapter is New Year’s Day.”
Edith Pierce
Our life is a story. Some are romances, some are adventure stories, some are didactic, some are political thrillers, some are fantasies… What’s yours?
Arg! April 11, 2012
Your priorities are
not my priorities.
Your time is
not my time.
Your hopes are
not my hopes.
Your deadlines
are not my deadlines.
But all
of mine,
depend
on yours.
wanna be happy? April 8, 2012
“People are just as happy as they make up their minds to be.”
― Abraham Lincoln
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jet lag March 29, 2012
I sitting here feeling wobbly. My head hurts when I move too quickly, and I’m so tired I can barely move. It’s been almost a week since we stepped onto the plane in London for the journey home, and I still feel like I did the first night when we pulled into the driveway after 24 straight hours of travel: gross.
Normally, I don’t even feel jet lag. I’ve been to Europe six times over the years, and after the first 12 to 15 hour sleep, my clock has reset and I’m fine. So what’s different this time?
Sure, I’m older than my first trip when I was eighteen, but I didn’t react like this last year, so I don’t think that’s it. I’ve pondered all week, and the only thing I can think of is that we had daylight flights this time. Both going and coming we followed the sun. In previous years, I believe most of the flights were over night.
How about you? Do you get jet lag? Is it worse after day flights than it is after night flights? How do you deal with it?
empty March 21, 2012
What laughter echoes
through empty hallways
mocking joy
mocking always.
What song echoes
through empty places
mocking love
mocking faces.
What words echo
through empty pages
mocking peace
mocking rages.
building cathedrals March 16, 2012
Over the last few years, we’ve had the opportunity to visit several basilica and cathedrals in Italy and France. These huge edifices dedicated to the glory of God, all share one commonality: the architects and builders who began the project did not get to see it completed. Building a cathedral is a gift to the future that you will never see. This thought first occurred to me when I read Ken Follet’s Pillars of the Earth, but it has been reinforced by recent experience.
Take La Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, Spain, for example. The project was begun in 1882. The initial architect retired in 1883 and Antoni Gaudi took over. He was so dedicated to the project that he moved in, and had a bedroom in the church. He died in 1826. In the book, The Gaudi Key, I read that he was hit by a tram, and he was dressed so poorly that he was presumed to be homeless, and taken to a pauper’s hospital. When he was found, he refused to move, and he died there. He had spent over 40 years building the church at that point, and he remains there, buried in a crypt under the high altar.
In keeping with Gaudi’s style, La Sagrada Familia is a very organic building. Animals and nature abound. Some of the spires seem to have been inspired by termite nests. Trees sprout from others. The columns supporting the roof are like primeval trees. The ceiling has parabolic circles Gaudi intended to improve the acoustics of the choir loft, which was built for 1000 choristers.
It takes a special kind of vision to look into the future and begin building a cathedral. La Sagrada Familia is scheduled for completion in 2026, in time for the 100th anniversary of Gaudi’s death. The project is completely financed with donations and entry fees to the church. We bought our tickets and climbed the stairs of those spires. We contributed a little bit to the building of a cathedral, a little nod to the future whether we are part of it or not.
Great projects are begun by simple men. When others assume the vision and accept the challenge, the baton is passed, and great accomplishments can be achieved.
Shawn L. Bird 
toes March 28, 2012
Tags: free verse, love, poetry
My toes travel,
shifting beneath the sheets,
searching for your warm form,
and encounter emptiness.
Where you were
there lingers
a memory of warmth
that leaves me longing,
lonely,
for your return.
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