A warm bright spot

A warm bright spot

This world contains multitudes
It’s not one or the other
For every day full of sunshine and warmth
There’s a storm waiting to darken the sky
That will, too, eventually pass
And there’s often no sense
No reason
Why some get more of one
And some more of the other
And some not enough of either.
And I am just one small part of this world
One weightless drop of water,
One small beam of light,
But I am a part of it
It’s shape and feel
It’s light and darkness
So I seek to be a small, warm, bright spot
A gentle place to take a rest
Before moving on the way
And I seek not to take
But to give
Not to win
But to build
Not to hate
But to love
And I know I will fail sometimes
But I hope to succeed more times
And I hope you join me
And the world becomes a little warmer and brighter
Together.

How to help

How to help

I saw it on the news again
The same sad story
A man the world forgot
Neglected, didn’t shelter
Acting out a little
Crying out in pain
In a way that was inconvenient to society
His light extinguished too soon
By a violent wind
And I stand here
Lost in thought
Asking how to solve the problem
Asking where it comes from
And how I play a role
How can I help my fellow man?
When sometimes I feel I can hardly take care of myself
But that’s nothing
Compared to what he lived
But this problem is so big
And each of our parts is so small
It can feel hopeless
But that’s not a reason not to try
So I hope the next time I can do something
Something small or large
To help ease someone’s pain
I will do it
Without a seconds thought
And that there are millions just like me
Thinking the same.

Human

Human

Sometimes I feel
Like my heart is so close to the surface
Protected by nothing
Just a paper thin skin
Beating, faster and faster,
Straining to leave its cage
Always reaching for something
Always searching
Grasping
For something that slips through my fingers
Every time

But sometimes I catch a glimpse in the mirror
Of the masks that I wear
The shell that I use
To protect myself
To keep myself apart
Even from those I love

And I wonder
How I could be both of these things at once
Why there is nothing in the middle
And if one is the real me
I guess there is no answer
And that I’m not the only one
And that is part of what makes us human

The Fork in the Road

The Fork in the Road

Some want to be known
Some want to disappear
Sometimes it’s best to just be
To take the road in front of you
with all the twists and turns.
To look just ahead,
to see each fork in front
and only think about the next right thing.
Life is not always fair
It’s often a game of chance
Or a game of hard work and chance
Where both are needed
To get where we are going.
But the fates don’t bend to our will
So we can try to control the little we can
And hope that it’s enough.

Pain

Pain

You asked me why I make my life so hard
I’m not sure it’s like that
Maybe it’s just that I don’t care
That I don’t do anything to stop it
But why?
I guess when one fears the hard times
The burn in one’s arms
The lead in one’s bones
The fatigue that smothers like a blanket
That fear itself
Can do all that and more
Always running from pain
That’s only temporary
That won’t consume my soul.

But maybe it’s not that
Maybe it’s the contrast
The old cliche
No light without dark
I always identify with people who have known pain
In a life full of pleasure, the absence feels like pain
In a life full of struggle, pleasure feels like manna from Heaven
On a journey with no food or drink
Legs aching full of hunger and thirst
The first sight of civilization
The first sip of water, bite of food
These are worth living for
When one returns from a walk home in the cold rain
Fleeing thunder and lightning
Soaked to the bone
And you walk through the door to a warm home
The deep breath
The feeling of peace.

Or maybe it’s to train
For the next shoe to drop
It always will
And that’s ok
To be afraid of pain is to intensify it
But I greet pain as an old friend
Coming for a visit
Who will leave
And one day return again.

The Future

We have to remember
That the future lays before us
Stretching endlessly
Towards… what?
That we’ll never see
And that’s ok
Things begin
Things end
And we don’t know what’s in front of us
Or for how long
But that’s the beauty
The surprise
The joy
The heartache
The pain
The love
It’s a novel we live, not read,
Full of endless possibilities.

Sunrise over the alps and lake Neuchâtel.
Flaws

Flaws

They say our flaws are what make us human
We’ve more than our fair share.
Pieces broken, splintered
Things we’ve had to bear.

But there can be an odd beauty
In light reflected from broken glass
The sound as it falls to the ground
A torn blanket on green grass

And the pain we feel
It comes and goes
Is replaced by smiles and laughs
One day will return

But we’re still here
Broken pieces and all
Marching on
Till the end.

Superman

Superman

I still remember the day
In the pool with the waves
Our parents weren’t around
The lifeguards didn’t see
As you swam for your life
But started loosing

So I came for you
Picked you up
Sank to the floor
Took three steps
And jumped with all my might
Trying to hold you above the water
And repeated until we touched ground
And I held you till they came

And I’ve tried all my life to become Superman
Since we were kids
Someone who could carry the world on their shoulders
And never let it down
But I know I’m flawed: so are you.
I guess that makes us human.

But I’ve made mistakes too
Been too selfish with my time
Too guarded with my love
Too focused on goals
To be fully there
But I hope you knew
Before you were gone
How much of a part
You had in my heart

And I’ve tried all my life to become Superman
Since we were kids
Someone who could carry the world on their shoulders
And never let it down.
But I know I’m flawed: so are you.
I guess that makes us human.

Spinning Around The Sun

Spinning Around The Sun

I got the call and got in the car
I’m on my way. I promise it will be ok.
What else could I think? What else could I say?
But I felt it, in my heart, the second you went away.
I looked at the clock to remember the time, 11:37,
Just in case it was you. It was.

And the earth has moved 70 thousand miles since you left this world, and I’ve thought about you every second. This rock keeps going on, and so will I, even though thoughts of you still make me cry, like I haven’t since we were four feet tall.

It’s your birthday today and I miss you.
More than you could ever know.
Sometimes even now it doesn’t seem real.
I hope you knew how I felt about you, I knew how you felt about me
And I hope you’d be proud of the way I’ve kept on.

Because the earth has moved 300 million miles since you’ve left this world, and I still think about you every day. This rock keeps going on, so will I, even though thoughts of you still make me cry, like I haven’t since we were four feet tall.

It’s a nice day outside, we’re all together.
It’s been a long time, the kids are almost grown.
They’ve heard stories of the man they’ve never known.
There have been good times, bad times, but more of the first. You haven’t been far, I’ve carried you with me every step of the way.

And who knows how long I’ll still be here? 42 billion miles, each one of them thinking about you. This rock keeps going on, so will I, even though thoughts of you still make me cry, like I haven’t since we were four feet tall.

I’m slower now, my hair is gone, I’ve begun to fade away
But you’re still the same handsome man in my memory.
I’ve lived a life. So many stories I couldn’t tell you.
Life is hard. Life is good.
And I don’t know what’s next
But it’s time to follow you.

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I was a young man once

I was a young man once

I was a young man once

Full of promise, strength, and will

I had a whole life ahead of me

And plans for what do with it.

That’s all behind me now, I can see it

Didn’t turn out quite the way I thought it would be

But yeah, I’m lucky,

I knew a lot that never made it here,

We lost most of the good ones along the way,

You lose them all in the end

And you’re left with people who no longer remember

That you were a young man once.

 

There’s a lot I never shared with you

So much forgotten along the way

Countless days, wars fought and won

Wars lost too, with no remedy

But to keep moving forward.

Many sorrows along the way, but joy and love too,

Silver and gold threads woven together in the rich tapestry of a life.

 

I was a young man once

Full of promise, strength, and will

I had a whole life ahead of me

And plans for what do with it.

That’s all behind me now, I can see it

Didn’t turn out quite the way I thought it would be

But yeah, I’m lucky,

I knew a lot that never made it here,

We lost most of the good ones along the way,

You lose them all in the end

And you’re left with people who no longer remember

That you were a young man once.

 

I guess I’m ready to go now

The kids are grown, their kids too

It’s been good to see, but now you don’t need me

Time to go where I’m supposed to be

A place where my bones don’t hurt

And I can move with ease

A place where I can be with the people who remember that

 

I was a young man once

Full of promise, strength, and will

I had a whole life ahead of me

And plans for what do with it.

That’s all behind me now, I can see it

Didn’t turn out quite the way I thought it would be

But yeah, I’m lucky,

I knew a lot that never made it here,

We lost most of the good ones along the way,

You lose them all in the end

And you’re left with people who no longer remember

That I was a young man once.DSC05670 (1)