Middle-age Blues...

Today's PAD Challenge; Suffering poem

He lights a cigarette

Waiting until

They flip the sign

At Toney’s Bar and Grill

He’s slapped on

Just enough after-shave

To dull the truth

And make him brave

Cause he’s still got it

Cool dude in new boots

And he’s not suffering

From middle-age blues

No he’s not ready to

Wear ‘old-man shoes’

And he’s not suffering

Middle-age blues

His Ford F150

Is parked outside

He just needs a babe

Looking for a ride

So he’s flirty and dirty

Tries his sexiest grin

Man, this used to charm them

As he’d reel them in

But now an eye-roll

Is the best he can do

And trust me

Tonight he’s gotten a few

But he’s not suffering

Those middle-age blues

And it’s their loss

If they refuse

Mr. Hot-shot

In new,

Rawhide cowboy boots

He swivels on his bar-stool

Scanning the place

Hoping for a fresh

Unfamiliar face

But he’s seen them all

And well, the truth

Is, they’re

Crowding those young bucks

With nothing

But youth

And dreams

And time

Aw, pitiful crime

The thief of years

Won’t reimburse

Those innocent fears

An’ if he were a cursin’ man

Well, he’d curse

But he doesn’t;

After all it could be worse

He’s got a cool truck

And the sun’s just goin’ down

With enough time to make it

Over to the next town

Because it’s just this way

Beggars can’t choose

And he’s not suffering

Those middle-age blues

No how, no way, crank up the tunes

He’s not suffering

Middle-age blues

© Janet Martin

This poem is entirely fictional...any reference which seems to apply to you is completely accidental;)) I decided to have a little fun with the hapless fellow having a smoke outside  Smokin' Tony's on my way home today:))

Empathizing...

 

Woman, O, woman what maketh thee tick
I wish I could tell you I don’t give 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 we 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 hastily fled

Woman, O woman, if I had what it took
I’d write one of them thar best-seller books
Cause 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?

Just for fun;) to all you men!
Last night I gave my son a playful push when he complained that his sister is driving him CRAZY! Then I winked and I growly- whispered in his ear...'get used to it my dear, cause we women drive you guys crazy for a long, long time!First it's your mom and sisters, then its your girlfriend, your wife...' he laughed.
  And then there's  those poor dearest hubbies who really do have to learn how to roll with the punches; aka mood-swings:). I dug this poem out of the archives, because the other night hubby shook his head and said, 'I'm never, never gonna figure you out'. I felt a sincere wave of sympathy and empathy because I don't have myself figured out yet either.

Longevity of Love

Girls, men are not really

That different from us

We both desire deeply

Respect and love

If we gave to our better halves

The things we hold dear

Perhaps some of love’s struggle

Would disappear

Complicated simplicity

Just you and I

Yet, this thing called love

Can drive us wild

But we are not so different

If we learn to live

Knowing what we both want

We must learn to give

© Janet Martin

 

As I Think about Men and Women

Men and women seek

Other men and women

Trying to fill a void within

Men and women find

Other men and women to nurture

Or heal its damaged mien

Men and women love

Men and women

For Love is a thread, its power profound

As men and women wish

For other men and women

By its gossamer potency we are bound

Men and women need

Other men and women

To satisfy love’s single utter plea

There is no other way

And no other beauty

Like these friendships both now

And yet to be…

© Janet Martin

The Sunday Whirl

Little Boy

'There's no such thing as a bad boy' (Father Flanagan in Boy's Town)

We love you so

The freckle-nose

The mischief, spontaneity

The reckless grin

The dimpled chin

The well of curiosity

The cause and cure for mother’s woe

Oh little boy, we love you so

Robust and sun-tanned leap of joy

How we love you, little boy

Our pride and joy

Dear little boy

Mother’s laughter and her tears

So we hold you

And we scold you

Innocence soon sheds its years

Time has such quick impatient feet

Oh little boy, precious and sweet

We must train you while we can

For soon, too soon you’ll be a man

© Janet Martin

One of my all-time favorite movies is Boy's Town. (Spencer Tracey, 1938) for so many reasons.

I agree with him, there is no such thing as a bad boy...

a child learns from what he is taught by what he observes.

Train up a child in the way he should go: 

and when he is old, he will not depart from it.

Prov. 22:6 

Teach me how to Pray

Oh, What Then?

We observe in astonishment

Man’s newest accomplishment

And wonder what will follow

Scientists place

Their cameras in space

As we glimpse infinity’s hollow

Medicine keeps the dying alive

But no matter how we study and strive

We cannot touch the order

Of God-ordained things

Or alter the courses

His authority brings

Mornings will ever succeed the night

Two wrongs will never make a right

We all get older with each passing hour

And none are exempt from His grace or His power

No one can order the rain from the sky

There is no invention so we will not die

We cannot shuffle seasons in nature or man

Or rearrange one molecule of His plan

For He IS God, we are merely men

We are born, we die; and oh, what then?

Perhaps we ought to take a closer look

At His Word and teaching of His Book

For nothing will happen that He has not told

His truths are unfolding since centuries of old

Knowledge is admiral; His gift to men

But if we ignore the Giver; oh, what then?

  

© Janet Martin

Outer space images fill me with utter wonderment and awe!

How GREAT is our God.

He has given men the knowledge to glimpse infinity, but we CANNOT add one jot to TIME!

Time is a wee capsule...what then?

Oh, that's right! Eternity.

But His Book shows us the way to Him eternally. He did not leave us as sheep without a Shepherd for He IS love.

Just as I Am- B.J. Thomas

Simple Rules for a Life Well-lived

Love one another

With each gifted breath

Every man is a brother

In the hour of death

Help one another

Be gentle and kind

Always with the other

Foremost in mind

Cheer one another

The language of grief

Is as universal

As comfort’s relief

Care for each other

No matter the creed

We all our humble

Creatures of need

Love one another

For soon we shall be

Sister and brother

For eternity

© Janet Martin

Of Things to Come

It’s happening; you’re leaving me
Time sheds its guarded subtlety
It fills the timbre of your voice
I must concede; I have no choice
You’re leaving me

The way you look into my eyes
Has cut denial down to size
Your thoughts have changed as well they should
Time loosens strings and it is good
You’re leaving me

You’re leaving me; I look ahead
With throbs of mingled joy and dread
I wonder what God has in store
As you advance toward the door
You’re leaving me

To bolt the door I would not do
Many before have passed on through
Childhood extols its dividend
As love and pride and longing blend
You’re leaving me

It is the way of life and time
The broadening of a nursery-rhyme
Years bare their single-minded plan
A boy must leave to be a man
You’re leaving me

Janet~

Lest week Matthew (our son) had a few buddies over. When one of them first spoke
I spun around and did a double-take. I had not seen him in a little while
And suddenly his voice was deeper. Today, from another room, I heard Matt talking and it hit me…it is happening to him too.
When…how?

Torturous Tango

You don’t tell me what you’re thinking

And well, I guess I do the same

And I’m beginning to wonder

If this has turned into a game

You ask me how I am doing

I smile and say I’m just fine

I ask you what’s new in your world

And you hand me that worn-out line

“Oh, nothin’”

It’s a sad and a strange kind of two-step

A dull choreography

As words cover up the silence

Expanding between you and me

It’s a painful slow-motion tango

This dance that somehow we’ve begun

As you ask me what I am thinking

And I reply in monotone

“Oh, nothin’”

Empty words are like wall-paper

They simply cover up the truth

As we sit apart together

And speak of the weather, and food

Our eyes plead for a brave, new language

But somehow no one makes the first move

So we dance in the safety of habit

And ask each other what we want to do…

“Oh, nothin’”

Janet

Realizations #2

It hurts sometimes
To look into your eyes
And realize
That soon you will be a man
But what a tender pain to bear
For I know God has a plan
For you, my dear
And I cannot deny it
As your head brushes my chin
It won’t be long before I wonder
Where my little boy has gone
And as I pause to ponder
The brevity of it all
Perhaps a little tear will fall
But oh, what a tender tear to shed
For though we cannot know what lies ahead
We will have each other
And God
I will always be your mother
And no matter where you trod
When I cannot be there
God will reach you with my prayer
His light is never dim
And we can always talk to Him

Janet~

Will You Love Me?

You do not need to answer
But I think I need to know
Darling, will you love me
When my hair is white as snow
When the step of keen ambition
Slows to a cane-tuned tap
And my only real temptation
Is a sweet mid-morning nap
When I’ve traded tea and coffee
For a mug of nice warm water
And you wish that I was younger
And I wish the soup was hotter
But the grand-kids keep us laughing
Though we might forget just why
It doesn’t matter; while we’re rocking
Somehow time still seems to fly
While we count out which pills to take
The yellow, white or blue
And talk of how they just don’t make
Things quite like they used to
And if I should talk up a storm
It really will not matter
You’ll simply turn the hearing aid down
And thus turn down the chatter
My dear, you need not answer
But somehow I need to know
Will you love me, darling
When my hair is white as snow…….

Janet~

A Rich Reward

It takes courage to write the words
That perhaps we would never say
It takes courage to love when it hurts
It even takes courage to pray
It takes courage to rise above
The force that begs our retreat
It takes courage to stay and prove
We will not accept defeat

It takes courage to say ‘I was wrong’
It takes courage to make it right
It takes courage to remain strong
In temptation's dangling delight
It takes courage to stick to the truth
When it would be easier to lie
It takes courage to say hello
But more courage to whisper ‘good-bye’

It takes courage to be a man
It takes courage to be yourself
It takes courage to take a stand
Instead of following every one else
It takes courage to do our best
It takes courage to trust the Lord
But if we do we will be blessed
For courage yields a rich reward

Janet~

Man..........

Between the tall buildings

The towers, sky-scrapers

Below the rewards of

Man’s greatest endeavors

There, at the base

Of grand architecture

Is the most amazing

And intricate creature

….man

Though buildings may draw

Grand admiration

And we stand in awe

At an artists creation

The inevitable remains

This is simply a street

Lined with structures

Of steel and concrete

But every last man

In all of the masses

Though he lingers admiringly

Or hurriedly passes

Is of equal value

In the Creators eyes

We are His workmanship

Bought with a price

……….blood

Buildings will crumble

There is nothing so grand

As to be immortal

Or above the command

Of One, who created

Not of stone or wood

But blew on the dust

And made flesh and blood

…..man

Concrete and steel

Will crumble and rust

Flesh and blood

Will return to dust

But within every man

And beyond our control

Dwells the immortal

The undying soul

Janet~

Architecture is such a pleasure

To behold

The completion

Of a great dream

But as I stood gazing in admiration

As crowd upon crowd rushed by

It suddenly struck me,

Every single person, in every single city

Or in the remotest corner of the earth

Never escapes the eyes of his Creator.

Architects dream, build, die

None of their work will remain eternally

But every man, woman, child, baby

Who breathes upon this earth

Will meet their Creator!

Hallelujah, He has also given to everyone

Living Hope

For the soul that will never die.

On 'What Might Have Been'.....

Life hath not raised mighty men
Like tall and stalwart tree
By fate of what might have been
Or what is to be will be
The man who stands at his life’s end
With valor and with pride
Is not by what might have been
But is because he tried……..

‘He may have fought, he may have won
If only ‘this’ had been……’
‘Too early set the evening sun’
‘The hill was tall and mean’
‘Too swift the enemy approached
To weary then was I’
Behind a wall of fear he crouched
Too proud even to try

Life gives to he who will not bow
Subjected to defeat
But puts his hand back to the plow
Wiping away his sweat
He does not say what might have been
Had he done that or this
He gives the very best he can
And only sees what is…..

Life hath not raised mighty men
Behind a cowards tongue
Stammering what might have been
If he again were young
True men look life in the eye
With grit and honor keen
True men never will rely
On what might have been

Janet~

The Unlovely..........

Mankind may love earth’s beauty
The oak, the river flowing
The towering peak, the wooded hill
The mellow breezes blowing
The fragile bud on hearths of spring
The passion of the thunder
Each single ecstasy may bring
A sigh of awe and wonder……….

Mankind may love the hand it clasps
The comfort of the moment
As he sees lights of home at last
His haven from life’s torment
Within the arms of love’s embrace
There is no realm of wanting
Gazing at each child’s wee face
Earnest, fearless, trusting

The crimson glow of twilight’s snow
The murmur of the ocean
The sacred calm after a storm
Arouses pure devotion
To love life’s gifts of excellence
Seems to come naturally
But only God can help us love
Life’s truly unlovely……….

Janet~

This Person.......

Who is this person?
This creature of habit…
Habits that drive others crazy
But I find endearing
Or used to….perhaps?
Who is this person?
Who laughs and smiles
And has the occasional growl
When she is weary
Or when I drive her crazy
Who is she, this one
Who comforts me?
My lovely friend
Even when I don’t see
Her; still she remains
Tenderly, dearly, at my side
Who is this woman?
Once she was my bride
Gazing at me…
….in love, starry-eyed
We’ve come a long way
Together, she and I
As she became mother
And we began to divide
The hours and days
That once belonged to
She and I…..
Who is this person
This half of my life
I've grown so accustomed to.....
Ah yes, she is my wife

Janet~

All Because......

He’s tired most of the time, it seems
He slowly let go of those boyhood dreams
He’s busy now with demands and things
All because he fell in love with a woman
His golf clubs are hooks in the old tool shed
He swings a little girl from his knee instead
Another mouth joins them to be fed
All because he fell in love with a woman

Who knew heaven on earth would be
An old stone house and a willow tree
Or that weariness could be so sweet
All because he fell in love with a woman
So what if there are more bills than money
You can’t buy love or a darling honey
Even in the rain it’s a little sunny
All because he fell in love with a woman

There’s no such thing as a fool-proof plan
Car-wrecks and dental bills, a worn-out van
And yet, he is sure he’s a most blessed man
All because he fell in love with a woman
One day at a time is all he can bear
He lives on love, a pay-check and prayer
But you won’t find a happier man anywhere
All because he fell in love with a woman

No Picasso on his study walls
Crayola artwork decks fridges and halls
With a family portrait; the best of them all
Because he fell in love with a woman
He doesn’t miss those faded dreams
In his eyes a deeper contentment gleams
Heaven is pleasure in every day things
All because he fell in love with a woman


All Rights Reserved
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

All Rights Reserved
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!

All rights Reserved
Janet Martin