The Brook

In the crook of the arm
Beneath the hill
Where cool mist rests
Serene and still
Like a silver sea
In a silent dell
A mystery……
No, I know it well
Beneath its veil
The small murmurs
Of a silver trail
In a thousand summers
By a brook
Where bare feet splashed
And minnows flitted
And hours laughed
In the palm
Of out-stretched hand
Where minutes trickled
Like golden sand
Upon a porch
Of withered grass
Where now I watch.
As memories pass

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Janet Martin

I Wonder.....

Did the mourning dove
Who rose before the dawn
To croon her song of love
Know that you were gone?

Is it dew or tears
Glistening on the vine
Where the first light appears…
…and are they yours or mine?

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Janet Martin

I'm Glad you're Home...

I’m so glad you’re home
The place is not the same when you’re not here
It’s like part of me is missing
I’ve grown quite attached to you, my dear
Why is it when you’re gone I feel so empty
Or like a little piece of sun has gone away
It seems to me like someone’s always leaving
Will we all be home again some day?

The blue above me suddenly is bluer
The sun a little warmer on my back
When you’re gone I feel a silent hunger
When you’re home there’s nothing that I lack
It’s comforting to know you understand me
Without me needing to explain
When you’re gone the house is big and empty
When you’re home love is complete again

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Janet Martin

This summer it seem to me
There’s always someone coming home…….or leaving

Like We Never Loved At All....

It’s getting dark a little earlier each evening
The camp-fire smoke is lingering in the air
It’s summertime for now but I am grieving
The cooler breezes running through my hair
Still, I revel in the her flickering halo
Creating memories that I can recall
Years from now…..with pangs of muted sorrow
For it’s almost like we never loved at all

The hazy yellow moon softly caresses
The hills beyond the wheat fields amber sea
What is hiding in those rolling tresses?
And why are distant blue hills taunting me
I stare up at the clouds, my silent witness
Suddenly I feel so very small
A single tear-drop breaks the summer quietness
For it’s almost like we never loved at all

The warm breath of July is pure enchantment
Mingled with the sighing walnut tree
Patriarch of my small summer heaven
Whispering in the misty midnight breeze
They say somewhere summer lasts forever
They say New York is lovely in the fall
I say, summer, cry me a river
For it’s almost like we never loved at all

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Janet Martin

Who knew????? Sitting with a few
Very wonderful twelve-year old kids
At a summer night camp-fire, feeling abundantly blessed
Could evoke such melancholy inspiration!!!
There is no rhyme or reason to the laws of poetry!!!

What We Really Mean....

We talk about your work and how it’s going
We talk about the kids and what they need
We even talk about the weather
We talk about the cold, the rain, the heat
We talk about your favorite sport in season
About the little troubles of the day
But darling is there really any reason
We don’t say the things we need to say

I love you, I’m sorry
Forgive me for the thoughtless words I say
I need you, don’t worry
I will love you till my dying day

You tell me that your mothers feeling poorly
We should go and visit her real soon
I tell you that my garden tillers broken
If I could I’d hurl it at the moon
The window in the basement will need changing
Before another winter closes in
I think the furniture needs re-arranging……
Why don’t we utter what we really mean?

I love you, yes it’s true
I was wrong to say the words I said
I’m sorry, yes, me too
Why don’t we take a moon-light walk instead?

I’m lonely…yes, me too
Do you love me like you used to do?

.....I think we need a new table-cloth
Do you prefer the color green or blue?

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Janet Martin

....for three days we talked
about everything except
what we really wanted to say.....

(Anna Karenina)...paraphrased

It's Easier Now

It’s easier now than it used to be
To be satisfied with simplicity
I know when it comes to endless ‘stuff’
There will never, ever be enough
For it can never satisfy
The hunger in a longing eye

I’m satisfied with moments in the sun
With rest when all the busy day is done
I prefer the sparkle in your eye
To that of diamonds for which dreamers sigh
I long for just a few well chosen words
That leaves earth trembling and heart stirred

Material wealth may bring a fleeting charm
I prefer the comfort of your arm
‘Round my shoulder at the close of day
As we watch the red sun slip away
And you turn to look at me.......
I know I have everything I need

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Janet Martin

Vacation

I need a little vacation
A little time to play
And I don’t need an explanation
I’m going to play hooky today

The garden is a haven
I love the scent of soil
But I am tired of slavin’
In all it’s endless toil

I need a little breather
A little one on one
I love today’s kind of weather
In the grand old sun

Oh, I need a little vacation
Dust and dirty dishes
May be a house-wife’s heaven
But they can’t satisfy my wishes

I’ll be back in an hour
Or… make it two or three
The sun has mysterious power
When I’m in her company

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Janet Martin

Acknowledgement....

I no longer try to forget
My sorrow or my regret
For somehow the older I get
I begin to see
It’s not in the moments of gladness
But in my hours of sadness
The Teacher of love and goodness
Is teaching me

I’ll take those moments of sorrow
Who knows, maybe tomorrow
Someone may need to borrow
A little sympathy
And because of my tumbles
When life teaches and humbles
I can relate as another stumbles
By what life has taught me

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Janet Martin

Do You?

Do you hover on the surface of your day?
Or do you delve right in?
Do you tip-toe fearfully
Waiting on its fringe?
Or do you live it to the full
Do you laugh and cry
Love and hate, whisper, yell
Or does it just pass by
Do you hug, kiss, weep, let go
Do you work and play
Sometimes quickly, sometimes slow
Oh, and do you pray?
Do you try and do you stumble
Do you celebrate your joy?
Do you sing or do you grumble
Do you build or just destroy
Do you hurt and do you love
Do you bear love’s silent sorrow?
Do you see the stars above?
Or are your thoughts upon tomorrow
Do you take a faith-leap chance?
Or hide in some dark shadow
Oh, and tell me, do you dance
In summer’s fleeting meadow
Do you live or just exist?
Each day a span of hours…
Tell me, have you been kissed
And do you smell the flowers?

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Janet Martin

Lemon-flavored Night

Suddenly
The half-moon lemon
Sweetens on the tip of my tongue
Tangy, free
Like summer’s heaven
A sparkling mystic love song
The flaws
In noon day’s sun
Are much less vivid now
As dawn
And dusk become one
In muted moonlight’s glow
I sip
The bloom-scented sigh
Of midnights laughing breeze
Exotic
Nectar from the sky
Pouring through the trees
Lemon-
Flavored summer
From a white cup unrestrained
Heaven
I lift my hands up
To catch the warm summer rain

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Janet Martin

I Love Your Hands

Your hands……
Spreading butter on your toast
Taking a cup of coffee from my hand
Your hands….
One of the things I cherish most
I study them
As you hold the morning paper
Sip your java
I absorb you…..
Your down-cast eyes
The strong chin and neck
Then I realize
In the end
I return
To your hands
For which I yearn
When you are near
Or far away
Your hands……
Holding the pen
While writing
Words
Touching me
Like no spoken sentiment ever can…
For so much more is heard
From script of pen
Held in your hand
Turning the ordinary
Into extra-ordinary again….
And again
Darling I love your hands
With them you
Love…
Me
Satisfying with mournful sweetness
My solitary anguish......
Life and love
A matter of hands
I love to study your hands
Over breakfast
Intertwined with mine

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Janet Martin

Disguise

Pardon me when you’re not looking
I still turn a somersault in my back yard
For the sake of my children I try to act my age
But sometimes it is just too hard
What’s a girl to do, tell me?
For I have tried in vain
Why am I over forty
But sometimes I feel just like a kid again

The rippling fields of amber
Taunt me as I pass and call my name
If I should decide to run or hide in them
I don’t think I really am to blame
I try hard to be a lady
If I don’t I know society would frown
But I will never tell you
What I do when no one is around

Pardon me, when you’re not looking
I don’t really need to act my age
And after all, age is a number
Just a couple random digits on a page
Being old and sedentary
Is a thought that simply tears me apart
Oh I try to be a lady
But the truth is sometimes.....
I'm still a kid at heart

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Janet Martin

Dilemma......

If I were not a poet.....
...I would weep
But if I were not a poet
I COULD SLEEP:):)

~Janet~

At 1 A.M.

It’s 1 a.m.
My today is really yesterday…
And my tomorrow is today
In this hour
The best hour of all
When shadows fall
Unbroken
Save for the flicker
Of the green willow limb
Waving lazily in the moonlight dim
At 1 a.m.
When the earth slumbers
And the heavens reveal
In dazzling silence
Gems of countless number
Which none can steal
But man can only wonder
What lies beyond?
The great unknown
Between earth
And the great white throne
At 1 a.m.
Where solitude is unhindered
By yesterdays left-over’s
Or tomorrows mysteries
An hour for vagabonds
And lovers
And poets….
Disregarding the steady ticking
Of minutes plunging into history
At 1 a.m.
Let the silver cloud
Then drift across the full moon
It enhances the beauty
Of midnight’s noon
For this hour is
A glorious gem
On a bed of navy blue
With soft charcoal hem
Glistening with dew
At 1 a.m.

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Janet Martin

July Bliss

I’m not smiling or laughing………..
Yet I am blissfully content
It is July, the heaven of summer
‘Simply being’ each moment is spent

Have you felt the quivering ripple?
Of her soft alluring kiss
Radiating every heart-beat
In pure extravagant bliss

Suddenly there is no ordinary
As you open up your eyes
To seize her rampant passion
Flowing from the skies

I dare not breathe too deeply
Yet still I must inhale
The purple of her slumber
Enhanced by moonlight pale

It manifests within me
A visceral sensation
Of joy sublime, unearthly
Pinnacle of elation

So drink in each moment of pleasure
Oh, how sweet it is
As summer’s sigh unravels
In July, the hour of bliss

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Janet Martin

Summer-time......

Turn down the window, turn off the air
Come on let the wind blow through your hair
Crank up a good old summer-time tune
‘Cause you and I both know summer’s gone too soon

Summer-time, ah, summer-time
It’s all good in the summer-time
I like the sun, oh and I like the rain
If I could when it’s over I’d hit re-play again….
I’m just a woman and you’re just a man
Let’s make the most of it while we can
In the summer-time, ah, good old summer-time

I smell the fever of fresh mown hay
I’m a believer in no work today
The sweet fields of honey will soon be gone
Ah, we can make money when the summer is done

Summer-time, ah, summer-time
It’s all good in the summer-time
Blue surf and white sand
Green turf and brown tan
Flip-flops and tank tops
Lemonade and cool shade
Good days and better nights
Dancing in the warm moon-light
Fire-flies and starry skies
We’ll stay up until sun-rise
I’m just a woman, you’re just a man
Making the most of each minute we can
In the summer-time, ah, good old summer-time

Oh, and did I mention bare-feet in the water?
How the sun gets your attention as the day gets hotter
Mid-night flower gardens sweet, sweet paradise
Oh, I beg your pardon, is that hunger in your eyes?
Did I mention bird and cricket in a summer symphony?
The soft and yellow sighing of the big old willow tree
In the summer-time, ah the good old summer-time


Tick-tock, the old clock eats up another day
That greedy miser is stealing my summer away……

Summer-time, ah, summer-time
It’s all good in the summer-time

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Janet Martin

Tonight Is Beautiful

I do not know
What my life has in store
But tonight is beautiful
I need nothing more
The cricket sings
The soft breeze sighs
Beneath the sheen
Of starlit skies
The air is smooth
As summer wine
No whisper moves
The stalwart pine
And now the cricket
Choirs cease
Enthralled perhaps
By perfect peace
I do not know
What comes tomorrow
But tonight is beautiful
I will not borrow
The shadow of
The great unknown
Tonight is beautiful
God on His throne

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Janet Martin

Those Buried Dreams....

They call for me
Those buried dreams
With muffled sigh
Across the sea
Today it seems
I hear their cry

Their memory spills
In misty dew
Upon the grass
The distant hills
Serene and blue
Whisper as I pass….

They call for me
With disregard
To my binding duty
I am not free
The dream is marred
It has lost its beauty

The colors swirl
Muted and vague
A powerless mist
For the girl
Of yesterday
Does not exist


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Janet Martin

Now.....

I see it now….
The ebb and flow
Of life and love
And now I know
As I walk past
The youthful tide
This life is but
A short sweet ride
A nameless sorrow
Fills my soul
As I see
The swift years roll
Though I know
I have been blessed
To clasp within
My arms life’s best
I will not cling
To wanton tears
Too little the day
To short the years
Oh how fickle
Is youths distraction
For now I see
A fair attraction
In the murmur
Of the breeze
Blowing o’er
Time’s shifting seas
Mirroring here
And there a glance
Of a brief
And fairer dance
Love cannot
Contain the power
To retain
One precious hour
As it softly
Slips away
To deep graves where
Its comrades lay
I see it now
This river of life
Will ever flow
With joy and strife
With human thirst
And endless dreams
That soon lay buried
In its streams
The fire coursing
Through youths breast
Too soon confronts
Life’s futile quest
For none can carry
‘Cross death’s sea
Any thing
To eternity
I see it now
Life is in vain
There is nothing
Man can attain
But to know
One precious truth
A Living Hope
For old or youth
Life is a chasing
After the wind
A futile course
Of blind leading blind
Until we lift
Our eyes to see
The glorious gift
For you and me
The only hope
Beyond this sod
Eternal life
Through the Son of God

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Janet Martin


It’s raining……….
A soft, comforting summer rain….
But it makes me insanely sentimental.
OR….I have been reading in
Ecclesiastes too much in these last few days!!!
WHAT A BOOK!!!

Summer's Tears

What comfort I find in summer’s tears
Falling from a window of countless years
I love her sunshine but now and again
I need the kiss of a warm summer rain

The wind-tossed maples laugh, as I
Reaching for the weeping sky
What sweet music to my ear
In the rhythm of summer’s tear

Tempo soft, now more intense
Pouring from her vast expanse
In dotted eighth notes,effortlessly
Passing through every barrier in me

And then…..a hallowed solitude
The tears have passed, earth lies subdued
As I hear the great Director say
Tears will come, and then pass away

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Janet Martin



Her face turned from tears to laughter in mere minutes......

Soul-mates of a New Kind.....

Comrades of like mind
Soul-mates of a new kind
Oft I would linger with you
While the finger of mist and dew
Brushes the roses on the arbor
Lulls the waves beyond the harbor
I stay with you for I can hear
In your gaze so blue, so clear
The Voice of our Creator
Daylight distracts with color and flavor
But you, O night, wrap your
Dark arms around me
I’m glad I found you
And you found me
For we are soul mates
Of a different kind
Kindred spirits
Of moon light and wind
And tranquility
Marred at dawn
By humanity

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Janet Martin

Silent Night

It should be a silent night
But what thoughts,
Oh, what thoughts I have
Of you, my love
The half-moon winks
His vertical eye
From a navy hemisphere
And I can’t deny
It should be a silent night
Without you, my dear
The wind with her sigh
Is dormant; asleep
The double layered sky
Of white noon-day cloud
Has vanished into the deep
And the silence
Should laugh out loud
But the tight-lipped
Midnight came
And left a summer ago
For I hear you whisper
Whispering my name
And I know
There will never be
Another silent night
For me

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Janet Martin

Tonight is a perfect, silent night.
I’ll go to bed tomorrow :

These Little Hands.....

These little hands I’m holding
Pull me along
As life begins molding
Their thinking patterns
Their smile and song
I gaze at these little hands
Pulling me along….

These little hands
Are bigger, I see
And I often wonder
As I ponder life
What will they to be?
These little hands
That are holding me

These little hands…..
Or they used to be
Are reaching, reaching
Trying to find
The hand of opportunity
As I feel them softly
Slipping away
Away from me

These little hands
Will do the deeds
That make or break them
They will plant the seeds
Of their choosing
I ask God will take them
For His using

These little hands
Will let go of mine
Yet I know
There is One so divine
That will never let go
Of these little hands
That briefly hold mine

And now I see….
I think I am holding them
But they are holding me
And while life is
Molding them
Their little hands
Are molding me

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Janet Martin

I Can Wait.....

Someday I will hear the tick of the clock
I will be able to hear myself talk
The pounding of eager, grassy feet
Won’t mar a kitchen sparkling and neat
The cookie jar will not be empty again
And I won’t be doing endless laundry in vain
I won’t sweep the floor countless times a day
Or trip over toys that were not put away…..

There won’t be spills of cheerios and milk
Perhaps then my curtains can be rayon and silk
Endless questions and ceaseless chatter
Will not alter the ingredients in the muffin batter
I can sip tea and read to my hearts content
Long before the daylight hours are spent
But I’ll gladly wait for that day to come
I love having my children at home

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Janet Martin

Fleeting Friend.....

You say, “I must go “
I say, “Won’t you stay?”
But your blue eyes say “no
I am going away”
You say, “Time is wasting”
I say “There’s tomorrow
Why are we hastening
Its troubles to borrow
For it is a hilltop
Beyond our reaching
Today is for love
And the lessons it’s teaching
Tomorrows worries are never-ending
But you are soon over
Yet I am befriending
The elusive lover
The fleeting drifter
But I love you, summer…
….I hear your laughter

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Janet Martin


Watching a perfect summer day go laughing by
while marching to duty's command.......
such is life.......I guess I'll pretend
I'm working with my feet in the sand:):)

Elusive .........

You drift across the sleeping hills
Above the darkened chamber
Of thrush and lark and whip-poor-will
And wheat field rich and amber
You brush your hand across the brow
Of gardens softly sleeping
And slip beneath the green willow
In silent arbors weeping

You deck the lawns where wee feet dance
In laughter’s sunny hour
With your jewels you enhance
The beauty of each flower
As winsomely you trip along
A soundless decorator
Heralding the darkened dawn
Elusive grand creator

I rose before the sun was up
To see if I could find you
But there within the butter-cup
You left your kiss behind you
Alas, you are a phantom queen
Your face I cannot seek
But like the past, you're simply seen
In teardrops on my cheek

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Janet Martin

What I Do Best....

For everything I am not nor ever will be
I could make an endless apology
But I have found my happiness
In doing what I can do best
In it I offer no pretense
Though I put up my best defense
I know before the twilight falls
My defenses are but tissue walls
Melting away in the setting sun
Darling there will never be anyone
Who understands me like you do
It’s so easy to love you
And I know that I am blessed
For loving you is what I do best

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Janet Martin

Woe-be-gone Man.....

Woman, O, woman what maketh thee tick
I wish I could tell you I don’t care a lick
But the truth, painful truth, when it’s all said and told
Is that keeping thee happy is worth more than gold

It don’t give me pleasure when yer ridin’ yer broom
But I’m mighty good at clearin’ out of the room
‘Cause when Ma’s on the war-path ye jes’ better run
An’ stay out of the house til her stewin’ is done

Yesterdays words brought me smiles and a kiss
I tried ‘em today an’ I don’t know what it is
But I thought you was goin’ to bite off my head
So out through the back door I quickly fled

Woman, O woman if I had what it took
I’d write one of them thar best-seller books
But I’ve lived with ye mor’en twenty year
An’ there’s things I ain’t never gonna figure out, I fear

Woman, O woman, I can’t understand
When God created you from the rib of a man
Why didn’t he take another rib as well
An’ create an’ instruction manual

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Janet Martin

Let’s face it girls….
Some days they just can’t win!

It is better to dwell in the wilderness
than with an angry, contentious woman. Prov. 21:19


Woman’s Reply
I will tell you if I can
You poor unlucky, lucky man
But the answer’s hard to find
For woman is known to change her mind!

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Janet Martin

Places

There are places in my mind
I re-visit and never should
Then there are other places
I’d go back to if I could
But the memory is dimmed
By a misty shroud
Enveloped by time
In a hazy cloud

There are places I visit that
Are tender and dear
I go there once in a while
just to feel you near
Then there are places I avoid
For what is the use
Of returning to them....
I will remain a recluse

I sometimes visit the places
Where I hear the laughter
That rings in the corridors
Of my mind long after
The dance has ended
And our ways have parted
But I cannot
Remain broken-hearted

So I return
Surely there must be
A way to bring
Those days back to me
I return
Only to see
How far they have slipped
Away from me




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Janet Martin

Lookin' Good

My, my but those jeans sure do look fine on you
And I’m thinkin’ you feel mighty fine in them too……

Is that a brand new outfit you’re sporting today?
Sure wish I could wear my new clothes that way……

You sure do turn heads as you walk down the street
The envy of all from your top to your feet

Let’s face it, anything looks great on you
You look as good in the old as you do in the new

Whether it’s Armani, Gucci or Klein
Or perhaps from a thrift store…….it all looks fine

But let’s not forget the most important part
While we look on the outside God sees the heart

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Janet Martin

Addiction....

Pink cotton candy on a soft blue sea

Heaven sighing in the ever-green tree

Barn-swallows dipping and soaring again

Why must poetry live inside my brain?

I am enslaved as a drunk to his brew

When I sleep in my grave perhaps I’ll be free too

But to lay down my pen is to close my eyes

To the midnight hush and the ruby sunrise

I must need to be deaf and dumb and blind

If poetry shall not plague my mind

I will not resist her taunting plea

For poetry exists inside of me

Why do I feel the need to explain

The chromosome which forms my brain

Alas, alas sweet woe is me

I am addicted to poetry

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Janet Martin

YES, YOU HAVE MY PERMISSION.....

YOU MAY LAUGH!!!!!!

Okay, so my decision to not write

lasted approx. 12 hrs.!!!

That's pretty good:)

You see I was doing okay

my decision seemed right

by the light of day

I had no urge to write....

but then tonight as the sun went down

and the summer day was wrapped in an evening gown

God flung His best handiwork into the sky

as He seemed to be asking, "Tell Me, why?"

SEE YOU IN SEPTEMBER...or Tomorrow

When she bows her reluctant head
And relinquishes her charm
When I see with joy and dread
The maples auburn arm
And autumn sighs within my ear
While I must shed a silent tear
To know her mantle has been cast
And another summer’s passed
When azure blue is a dusty hue
As the grapes that cling to the vine
I will see you again but until then
I must enjoy the summer sunshine!!!!

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Janet Martin

Eighth Great Wonder of the World

Laughter like ripples of sunshine
Across the summer lawn
Smiles as bright as noonday
Greet me in every dawn
Heaven wraps its finest
Precious as a pearl
Love pure and untarnished
In a little girl

Soft and sweet affection
In her little arms
She is the reflection
Of innocence and charm
What a tender wonder
This precious little girl
And I think there are eight
Great wonders in this world

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Janet Martin

And With The Dawn.... or Lucky One

And with the dawn comes a fresh awareness
A new gratitude
I’m filled with thankfulness
My passion renewed
You have been such a
Precious friend to me
If there’s no thing as luck
Well then, unlucky me
I can’t imagine my world without you
And with the dawn and with the dew
I know I’m the lucky one
I love you

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Janet Martin

Summer Sunrise

You are always out of reach
Rising like a burnished peach
Glimmering and amber-glazed
Once again I stand amazed……

…..As in the silence of the dawn
Here I am to look upon
The work of heaven’s outstretched hand
In lemon splashes on the sand

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Janet Martin

There's So Much To Do.....

There’s so much to do
when you’re in love
the sky is so blue
as it smiles from above
How gold is the sun,
How merry the river
And the meadows we run in
stretch on forever
we could sit all night
listening to the tune
of soft starlight
and opaque moon
and there’s never enough
hours in a day
to do all we could
or say all we could say
and dreams are as endless
as infinity above
there’s so much to do
when you’re in love
but
where there is no love
the window is small
often there’s nothing
to do at all

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Janet Martin

Mirage....

Pardon me, don’t think me rude
But I was wondering if you could
Turn and look at me again….
You see I’m thinking that the sun
Got in my eyes; I couldn’t see
Or else a wave washed over me
As the blue of sky and sea
Became confused in my periphery
And as I blinked to clear the sun
I looked again….but you were gone

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Janet Martin

And I Love You Too

I love little girls with pretty curls
And little boys with eyes of blue
I love flip-flops and hilltops
And I love you too

I love summer rains and daisy chains
I love a moonlit view
I love the sigh of a soft wind’s lullaby
And I love you too

I love one a.m. and heaven’s gem
In crystal drops of dew
I love the yellow rose, new clothes
I love you too

You are the light in my eye, the wish in my sigh
You are my sky so blue
You are my song in the night, my tender delight
And I love you too

You are the chance I took at romance
And I know this is nothing new
I love your glance I love to dance
And I love you too

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Janet Martin

Loving You

Loving you has been one of life’s sweetest pleasures
I have been given the rarest of treasures
Something so valuable, precious and grand
Something I carry in my heart, not my hand
And darling, sometimes I forget, yes it’s true
To tell you how nice it is….. loving you

You love me enough to be honest with me
I don’t care for ‘stuff’… like flattery
Some folk will tell you that truth may hurt
But flattery to me is like a mouth full of dirt
So I can reply in honesty too
It’s been such a blessing…. loving you

I know dear, we’ve had our share of trouble
But anything worth having is worth the struggle
As we stand at the top of the hill and look back
It’s easy to forget little things we lack
And I am so thankful for love kind and true
It’s been such a pleasure….. loving you

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Janet Martin

The Best Sound of All

Sh-h-h-h, don’t say a word
Everything that needs saying has already been heard
The wind is sighing in the willow tree
The fields are a misty silver sea
Let’s not mar this scene with mere syllable
Isn’t this silence wonderful?

Sh-h-h-h, I think I just heard the sound
Of night as she spreads her navy shawl down
And suddenly the green tree is a deep charcoal-gray
Come a little closer, you are too far away
Together I’m sure we can hear the night fall
Isn’t this silence the best sound of all?

Sh-h-h-h, oh, what’s that you say?
Can you hold my hand, well of course you may
There’s nothing in the world that is nicer to do
Than sit here and listen to the silence with you
Don’t you agree as the soft shadows fall
This silence is the very best sound of all?

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Janet Martin

Words, Only Words......

Words, words, only words he said
But at his words I shook my head
They are never really only words
These syllables evoke both healing and hurt
For word is the scalpel which slices the soul
And words are the ointment that makes us whole
Words are fire and words are ice
Words inspire and make us think twice
Words draw us in or shut us out
Words reassure and allay our doubt
No matter the embrace, no matter the kiss
Without ever a word there is something a-miss
Music is lovely it stirs the heart
But the words to the music are the powerful part
Words build and restore what other words crush
Words are the paint on a poet’s brush
Words, only words, perhaps that is true
But tell me, what is it that drew me to you?


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Janet Martin

My True Intent.......

God, only You know my true intent
The reason for all the hours spent
Compiling letter and syllable
Exploring how we think and feel
Only You truly understand
What really moves the pen in my hand
What draws my eye, what stirs my soul
What makes me cry, what makes me whole
Only You see beyond each line
You are the only One who can define
Each smile, each tear, each longing sigh
There’s no mystery twixt You and I
Yet it is this truth that makes me content
God, only You know my true intent

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Janet Martin

Home....

When you come home I’ll have the coffee waiting
Right beside your favorite chair
I’ll watch you as you read the paper
And you will run your fingers through my hair
Oh won’t it be nice to be together
Darling, sometimes it seems too long
But I can feel a change in the weather
And I can hear the echo of our song
Drifting to me ‘cross the turquoise ocean
Trickling to me from a starry dome
Miles can never bar the raw emotion
Just a few more days and you’ll be home
Then we'll sit on our favorite porch together
Discuss the little nothings of the day
Darling, I feel a change in the weather
Home is just a little dream away


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Janet Martin

There's Something About Your Picture.....

Tonight as I look at your picture
I am both happy and sad
For I feel an aching echo
As I think of the good times we had
And I smile in spite of my sorrow
I cannot laugh now or cry
What do I call these two mingled?
The grief and the joy in my eye…..
And who knew a little old picture
Could evoke such a powerful pain
The pleasure of re-living a memory
And wishing I could see you again
Oh, there’s something about your picture
It always does that to me
But to return to the day it was taken
Is an impossibility


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Janet Martin

I Love You....

I love you…..
Not because your eyes are blue
Or green or brown or gray
I love you…..
Not because you make me feel
Like a better person today
I love you…..
Not because you’ve taught me more
In lessons without word
I love you…
Like a wind-tossed wave
My heart is stirred
And I love you
Insanely, devotedly
Yes, it’s true
I love you, darling I love you
Simply for being you

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Janet Martin

Detraction.....

I could speak to you of the sullen slate sky
Hovering over golden tresses of wheat
Rumbling threats with flashing eye
Lurid, swirling sultry heat….
And I could try to describe the sun going down
A melting pot on the horizon
It were as if heavens most glorious crown
And all of earth’s rainbows were tossed in
And on the western sky-line spreads the
Glowing after-math
Of light and love and laughter
Flowing from a misty summer path….
And if I could I’d tell you
Of our dances in the rain
Freedoms pure sensation; blue
And laughing like we were insane
While inside the neighbors window
There is cast a querying eye
Life’s too short for sanity
When it comes to you and I
And I would describe the faces of
All the blooms that drink the heavens in
As I caress them with my words of love
They are more than petals and limbs
They are somber, drowsy, smiling maidens
Comrades; they laugh as we dance
And there’s something intoxicating
In each approving glance
Oh, there’s much beauty I could tell you of
Perhaps some you have never heard
But why detract from beauty and love
With something as fickle as words

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Janet Martin

Inspired by the sky tonight.....
..... and Anna Kerinina

To Make It Work.....

Sometimes we say I’m sorry
Just to calm the tide
When deep inside we’re still quite sure
Our actions were justified
And sometimes we bite our tongue, its true
When another’s words anger or irk
But sometimes we do what we have to do
Just to make it work…

Sometimes we walk that second mile
Not because we’re good
But simply because it’s what we’ve been taught
So we do what we know we should
And sometimes we might even take the blame
When others their duties shirk
We do what we need to in love’s good name
Just to make it work

There’s no keeping score when it comes to love
There’s give and give without take
There’s keeping our mouth shut when we’d like to yell
And there’s over-looking that repeated mistake
We all fail at times to do as we should
We each have our own strange quirk
And we all need to repay that unkind word with good
Just to make it work


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Janet Martin

Heaven on Earth

I know that heaven is out of earthly reach

But I think heaven on earth is a beach

Where the streets are paved with the sand and the sun

And on its fair avenues happy children run

I’ve heard the music, how sweet it is

Tuned perfection hummed by wind and waves

Blissful haven from daily demand

I could live forever in the sun and the sand

If I were an angel I would fly away

Where the tide washes up in a crystal spray

Yes, I know heaven is out of reach

But I’ve had a foretaste of its bliss on a beach

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Janet Martin

Numbers

There are numbers for the telephone
and numbers for my street
numbers on my grocery bill
and to tell my size of feet
there’s numbers as I turn the page
in every book I read
and numbers for each formula
in medicine or bread
numbers on a credit card
and driver’s license too
serial numbers, catalog numbers
there's scales and clocks, it’s true
but as I see all the numbers
when all is said and done
there’s only one I care about…
…it’s you, YOU’RE NUMBER ONE

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Janet Martin

Observations.....

There is no extra-ordinary happiness
Beyond your existing perimeter of view
The extra-ordinary happiness lies within
…within your circle and within you

Beyond your circle forever stretches forth
It is as limitless as the deep blue sky
But to hope for happiness in its lap
Is to live as a wasted melancholy sigh

As the daylight flees in lengthened shadow
And the hills are bathed in a purple-blue mist
There lies the new of today with childhood
For better and new can only exist…..

….for a moment in your palm then it too is old
And the dream that rises on wobbly limb
As a new-born calf, soon rests in the fold
Victim of reality and prey of time

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Janet Martin

Sun

Some people don't really like you………
I can’t understand why
I always feel lonely
As you slip from my sky
And melt in a puddle
On the horizon line
Sun, you’re a favorite
Friend of mine
You paint the sky
In azure blue
It is dull
Without you
A canvas of sorrow
Listless and gray
But today I see you
It’s a perfect day
As you smile on the grass
Where my children play

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Janet Martin

Today the sky is pure azure blue
It reminds me of Love
It reminds me of You<3

I looked up a few minutes ago
Into the bluest blue

There is no paint that can capture
This perfect shade….
Living proof
It’s heaven-made<3<3

Time Well-spent

In hills and fields and back-roads I’ve tasted
The most pleasant and glorious hours,not wasted.


Matt and I went on a little back road tour last night.