Gathered Thoughts

On poetry:
To hold back the poem
Burning inside of me
Is like forcing back rivers
At the mouth of the sea

On Strength:
The greatest strength is proven not in the holding
but in the power to let go…

On moderation:
Indulge every so often
It won’t kill you
And life is short
Do not indulge
Too often
For it will kill you
And shorten life

On trust and humility
“God” I ask, “Why must these things be?”
He replied, “So you trust with humility”

On sacrifice and submission:
God, don’t ask me to give up this little thing…
It is so very small
In fact, it is so little
It should not worry You at all,
Please, don’t ask me to give it up

On authenticity:
If the branch is attached to the true Vine
It will yield fruit fit for Heaven’s wine

On judging:
Unless we’ve lain with him in the trenches
And tasted the same bitter dirt
We ought not to judge our brother
On his reaction to hurt

On giving:
If you are giving where it is unappreciated
It does not mean you are giving to the wrong people
Especially if those people happen to be
Your children

God gives freely to us
In each moment

On serving;
We go
Driven by a force
Beyond human reasoning,
Love

The Very Beginning...

http://thewordwhisperer2.blogspot.com/2012/01/beautiful-gift-from-beautiful-friend.html

Carrie Burtt's story at Hope Whispers caused me to recall with sudden clarity when I began to write...today I was trying to decide why it is I need to write...I'm not sure I have the answer but it began when I was nine years old. I was sitting on a straw-covered step in the barn and suddenly I had a poem...a song actually to the tune of the stanza part of Rest By and By.

(I dug out the old black scribbler that holds my earliest dreams of writing) Here and there is a page with a huge X over it if I wrote it and then rejected it;))

This is the first poem I recall writing...

Me and My Savior

The great door of my heart
Is wide open each day
To let in the Savior
If he passeth that way

I often forget him
and sometimes go astray
But I ask forgiveness
When to the Lord I pray

I know how he suffered
On the cross of Calvary
And died in pain and sorrow
All because of you and me

He was laid in a tomb
By His friends who were sad
But on the third day
He arose, and they were glad

Forty days afterward
He ascended into Heaven
but the disciples kept the rules
That he had given

They preached to the people
In the countries far and wide
and told them of the story
How Jesus suffered and died

Janet~

I think the first three verses were the original poem and at some slightly later date I decided the poem/story was incomplete, hence the two columns.

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?

Where Would I Be?

Where would I be?
My fumbling thought
Seeks to express
My love, oh God
Nothing of worth
Have I to bring
To show my love
For you, my King

Upon this broken
Void of sin
Its grief would quench
True joy within
But then one thought
Occurs to me
Without Your love
Where would I be?

Tempted and tried
Lord, I would stray
Without Your light
To lead the way
Your mercy beams
Across the night
Where would I be
Without Your light?

Seasons and stars
Heed your command
And yet You hold
My shameful hand
As every sin-stain
You erase
Where would I be
Without Your grace?

Oh Lord, I have
One gift to bring
Accept the praises
That I sing
For living Hope
Has set me free
Without Your love
Where would I be?

Janet
But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy,
made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions
—it is by grace you have been saved.
And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus,
in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—
not by works, so that no one can boast.
For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

Eph. 2:4-10

The Perfect Poet

His poems are not constrained by words

They shout from sky and land and sea

For who on earth has ever heard

A purer form of poetry?


The poet of this humble sod

Could not one stroke of beauty pen

But for the poetry of God

Written on the hearts of men


Janet Martin~

You Are Not Alone

When midnight is lonesome and heavy and deep

When need in your bosom is stronger than sleep

When longing is clenching the hope from your soul

And life is a journey without a clear goal

You are not alone

When empty arms yearn for someone to embrace

When love’s loss has stolen the thrill from life’s race

When cold lonely hours bleed away, undefined

And night’s endless hollow expands in your mind

You are not alone

When tears of desire and helpless despair

Weep in every heart-beat and breathe on the air

When only the darkness responds to your plea

And nothing but silence keeps you company

You are not alone

Someone is waiting to be a true Friend

Arms full of mercy and grace without end

God so loved the world that He sent His dear Son

He is a true, faithful Friend to each one

You are not alone

What can we do His fellowship to receive?

All we can do is simply believe

His grace sufficient is love’s offering

Tender, omniscient are the words of a King

“You are not alone”

Janet

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son

That whosoever believes on Him

Will not perish but have everlasting life. John 3:16

I will never leave you nor forsake you. Heb. 13:5

Love's Parting

There is parting, in love
But never good-bye
Though its force like an ocean
May flow from our eye
Sweet, ever sweeter
Its memories gleam
Caught in the current
Of Time’s hastening stream

There is pain in love’s parting
And an ache in its thought
But love overcomes
What desire cannot
Though oft, for a moment
A tear dims the eye
At the thought of love’s parting
…but never good-bye

J~

Moments are like bubbles..
we cannot catch them, but simply marvel at their
delicate beauty as they pass.

Revelation

Beneath the sea
Behind your eyes
Under the snow
The 'hidden' lies
Beyond the hill
Around the bend
Above the sky
At rainbows end
In your pocket
In your pen
In your mind
Hidden, but then
In just one tremble
Of your lips
A universe
Of 'hidden' slips

Janet~

Tango

Paramount passion
Legion of sorrow
Tonight we dance
and weep tomorrow

Never once
did it enter our minds
that both are intricately
Intertwined

Janet

Touching the Bottom of the Sea

She clung to his words
like a drowning man
but he let go
and she couldn't

Swim.

Janet

Blessing...or Curse?

http://poetryblogroll.blogspot.com/2012/01/thursday-think-tank-80-choices.html

Choice…the blessed curse

Wake or sleep?

Coffee or tea?

Toast, eggs or cereal

Or all three?

Milk whole, skim, low-fat, no-fat

Hair-style, straight or curl?

Or an up-do in a clip?

Mother-ish or girl?

Flats or heels?

Skirt or jeans?

Black or denim?

Dirty or clean?

Wing it alone?

Or, pause to pray?

Say, Good job, son

Or have nothing to say?

Consume longing?

Or be content?

Seek or observe?

Music or silence?

Hope or despair?

Foolish or wise?

Laughter or self-pity?

Truth or lies?

Peace and deliverance

Or anger and strife?

It’s up to you, my friend

But we get only

One life

Janet

We become the choices we make!

Life is a sequence of choices.

Choice is free, but consequence is inevitable.

Choose, this day who you will serve...Joshua 24:15

The Clear Winner...

http://poetryblogroll.blogspot.com/2012/01/thursday-think-tank-80-choices.html

Prompt: choices

H-m-m-m

To write or not to write

An addiction is never

Really a fight

Unless we desire to over-come

I’m addicted to the love of word

So writing wins

Every time

Janet

Great Gain

Lord, give me eyes to see the little things within each day

Open my heart and help me learn to see You in this way

A thousand, thousand whispers from You brush earth’s weary sod

Open up my ears so I may listen to You thus, oh God

I have no need for riches that will tarnish, fade and rust

But help me Lord to gather treasures of the heart, not dust

Lord, open up my eyes to see the wonder of Your love

Flowing from moments within reach from portals up above

Contentment is life’s greatest gain, combined with godliness

Lord, teach me then how to remain within its quietness

Janet

Godliness with contentment is great gain…1 Tim. 6:6

The Measure of Success

Our lives are not measured by milestones
Or how much money we make
But they are measured by moments
In every breath that we take

Day’s fulfillment holds no guarantee
Life is a fragile thread
Only our God can clearly see
The road that lies ahead

The proof of success is not tallied
By one major accomplishment
But it is proven, step by step
In moments wisely spent

Yesterday is memory’s echo
Tomorrow is a vast mystery
But here in this beautiful moment,
Breathes a dream’s opportunity

Our lives are not measured by triumphs
Or failure’s bitterest taste
Our lives are measured in moments
Far too precious to waste

This is the day the Lord has made
Oh what a wonderful chance
To live and laugh and love and learn
To weep and dream and dance

Janet

I’ve noticed something over the years on my blog…
In ‘searches’ the amount of times
the words ‘alone’ and ‘loneliness’ are searched
are quadrupled over all the other searches combined.
A stark statement of hunger in this world…

This is the day the Lord has made,
Let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Psalms 118:24


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tych9nFpq3M&feature=autoplay&list=FLsqea52gOM17vOYBlwPVKvA&lf=mh_lolz&playnext=12

Separations

As the winter rains wash the world
Theirs crumbles
Silence is a long and painful good-bye
In veiled shambles

Soft as a baby's breathing morning wakes
Flicker of hope
But, how does one shatter an invisible cage?
Air is hard to grope

To wish on another, weakness
Is an all-time low
But oh,in a thousand new lows she wishes
He could not say ‘no’

She stares through the window; an unbidden mirror
A wall tear-drenched
'It takes two to protect and maintain walls'
Truth is a fearless wench

Across the room five-hundred channels worth
Of chatter swirls
Thick silence seeks the safety net of noise
As raindrops wash the world


J~

A Winter Night Idyll

https://margoroby.wordpress.com/2012/01/10/idyll-thoughts-tuesday-tryouts/

The wind is restless
Like a caged lioness
Seeking a wanton release
Stark pencil-line tresses
Against the far west
Mark the horizon’s crease
Twilight is spilling
Its dark blue tequila
Into the deepening sky
Tinting the evening
Until earth is an ocean
And sailors are you and I

The moon rises slowly
In reverence holy
Over the eastern sill
The stark, barren limb
In the dark west has dimmed
And the moody breezes are still
The moon-kissed ground
With never a sound
Is transformed to a crystal hall
Its subtle enhancing
Designed for slow dancing
We are drifters at a midnight ball

Hold me, my dear
For I think I can hear
In the silence, a symphony
Each tree silhouette
Is a marionette
Miming a rare melody
And I feel it start
In the beat of your heart
Throbbing against my cheek
An invisible choir
Of unbridled desire
And passion too willing to speak

The gallant remains
Of yesterday’s chains
Dissolve in night’s potent embrace
Fearless fingertips
Warm our eyes and our lips
The moon turns to hide its face
As the wind grows restless
Like a caged lioness
And the star in the sky strikes three
These dancers must sail
‘Ere the moonlight grows pale
We are lovers lost at sea

J~



Margo, I have no idea if it fits the prompt
but it was a lot of fun to write.
After reading John Greenleaf Whittier; Snow-bound

and then the poem by Christopher Marlowe
my muse was stirred:))

The photo I took last night helped as well.

Lean Years

“Look Alenka,
I am returning to my boyish figure,
The result of lean years”
Alenka throws back her head
laughing as tears
bathe her cheeks
“Ach, Milosz, ve vill never
look like tventy again
And then she winks…
but ve can feel it, eh?”
Now Milosz laughs, and together
beautiful notes blend
in the warm, sweet night
Trouble will end
on a morrow still hidden from sight
Love will take them through hard times
He loves her more than words can say
So he chooses not to tell her just yet
He got laid off today….

Janet


http://poetryjaam.blogspot.com/

The Architect (edited re-post )

http://magpietales.blogspot.com/ (top photo) Above photo- Toronto, Ontario Canada


In the birth of high-rises
Towers, sky-scrapers
Below the rewards of
Man’s greatest endeavors
There, at the base
Of his grand architecture
Is the most amazing
And intricate creature
…man

Buildings may draw
Our gaping admiration
As we stand in awe
At an artists creation
But the inevitable remains
This is simply a street
Lined with structures
Of steel and concrete
...dust

But, every last man
In all of these 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 decay and rust
Flesh and blood
Will return to dust
But within every man
And beyond our control
Dwells the immortal
The undying soul
...hope

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,
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.

After-effects of a Beautiful Time

There never was a perfect time for that…
The vacuum that seeks to inhale present joy
Should I succumb
But I cannot
For missing you is simply
The after-glow of a bloom
A lingering fragrance
Filling the room
And I will not languish
Too long in its pain
For some sweet, sweeter day
We will meet again
The curve in life's track
Steals you from my sight
Goodnight, oh my love
Good-night, goodnight
Love is not
A fleeting bloom of youth
It is the very essence
Of all truth
It does not leave us
Never to return
I wait, I weep, I walk, I yearn
And turn to love the moment I am in
For only, only moments
Never return again...

J~

Trust Issues...

Why is it, God?
Sometimes, with every fiber in my being
I fight Your will
You plant the sod
With spring, while it is winter
In manifold finesse
Your wonders spill
And yet sometimes I doubt
The merit of your way
God, guide me with Your spirit
This I pray

Why is it God
That I think I should comprehend
The wonder of Your love?
Unnumbered mercies
Sweet redemption
Flowing from Your hand
Have sealed my hope above
Compassion pours in rivers, boundless
No one escapes Your eye
Deliver me from this world’s hounding
Hear my cry

Remind me, oh God
If I should choose to live
Without You
Remind me of the reckoning
When this life is through
Help me, so that I may store
A timeless treasure
In Your keep
On Heavens shore
Remind me, oh God
Wherever I move
It is by Your grace and
Unfathomable love

Janet Martin

It’s all about Him!

To Children Old or Young

You are a special gift
Bestowed by God in Heaven
So use, though it may seem so small
The gift that you’ve been given

There is no deed too slight
No heart He will refuse
If we give back to Him the gift
He gives for us to use

Janet~

So many people God uses to touch each of us
as they use, for Him, their gifts.

Thank-you~

This poem inspired by some words on Milena's Blog

Keep on keeping on...for Him!

This morning I glared at the pen (wrote Still)
the pen seemed empty.
But the pen is merely a tool for Inspiration's higher calling.

The Forgotten Pond

http://sundaywhirl.wordpress.com/

It sleeps upon a still and frozen hearth
Forsaken, as the flash of childish dream
Attended by the Gardener of earth
Bejeweled by stones that line the bubbling stream
And I must go to this forgotten place
Of pine-thatched roof and rain-washed breathing space

A gate cannot dissuade my wanderlust
I’m drawn by leaf-notes fluttering aloft
Intoxicated by musk-laden dust
The wind is curved against me, cool and soft
I grope to touch the effervescent breeze
More hope have I, to rebuild memories

Veiled moments; thousands, pass in obscure schemes
The breath of nature’s grace dissolves their cry
There is a time to work and time for dreams
I spread my fantasies against the sky
Cattails like stalwart guards, cajole the fronds
Lacing the banks of long-forgotten ponds

It sleeps upon a still and frozen hearth
Jade broach garnishing winter’s stark lapel
Dazzling, rare, within its hidden berth
Ancient, forgotten and so beautiful
A jewel amongst the pine and cedar hush
Heaven dropped a sparkle from its brush

Janet~



The pond lay beneath this pine-thatched roof
I saw it yesterday, on my afternoon trek through the woods.

Flip-side of Love

http://poetryblogroll.blogspot.com/2012/01http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif/viceversa-midnight-snack-weekly-prompt_10.html

There is but one
Unmeasured sorrow
It is in that
Of a life,
Sadly wasted

If sorrow must be
Then I have been blessed
To know such love
It’s bitter-sweetness
Humbly tasted

Oh God, sorrow hurts
But it is not hopeless
With You
Sorrow is the flip-side
Of beautiful love

I have held love
And for love
I have let go
Grief is but a season
Heaven waits above

J~

To live without sorrow...
...is to live without love


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ri5XocxGyT8&feature=autoplay&list=FLsqea52gOM17vOYBlwPVKvA&lf=BFp&playnext=10

Still

Once upon a day you let me hear
The breakers crash upon the shore
But skies are gray, so gray my dear
And I can’t hear them crashing anymore
I trace the outline of your faultless innocence
Beg for oceans, raging deep inside
Where once you caused my eager heart to dance
Your pleasing satisfaction is denied

Tormentor of my secret, craving bliss
I cannot, oh I cannot love you now
Though, how I covet your designing kiss
Your whisper cools in silence on my brow
You lie there now, emotion drained and dead
Your reckless passion distant, cold and still
A coiffure filled with naught but ink-stained dread
I plead against your unresponsive will

Once upon another sweeter day
Perhaps you’ll stir in me so graciously
A long-forgotten, tender melody
And maybe then, oh love, then we will be
Inseparable in spirit, two as one
How, oh how I long for that again
But for now your lure and passion seem far gone…
…and you are just a cold and lifeless
Pen

Janet~

Rags

This is the apron she was wearing that day
On which she wiped happy tears
When she read the post-card he sent from New York
They had not slept apart in years
But that time it just could not be helped
Times were desperate and hard
He would have lost his job otherwise
So he sent her that special post-card

This is the dress she wore each Sunday
To church,faithfully, for years and years
It seemed the children and life needed money
And fabric after the war, was dear
But she never complained; though she could have, he knows
As he holds the dress to his lips
And inhales the rose-scent of lost, good old days
Between frail, trembling finger-tips

This is the hat she was wearing that night
When he asked ‘will you marry me?’
And her laughter trickles, winsome and light
Over his April memory
The shoes that she wore on their wedding day
He tenderly takes from the shelf
One room in an, 'old-age home' leaves only space
Enough for what he uses himself

…at the thrift-store he sets the bags on the counter
And says, ‘these belonged to my wife’
The clerk hurriedly shakes out the precious contents
…these remnants of a cherished life
If she had looked up she would have seen tears
From the old man who set down those bags
But she only glanced momentarily before
She tossed them in a bin marked ‘rags’

Janet Martin

A little while ago someone left a comment (anonymously)
On the poem Old Man. Her comment plagued me incessantly and I knew sometime the moment would be right to write it.
This morning I began pulling phrases together, that I had collected in my thoughts, but it wasn’t working THEN,
I read the latest post on Lilacs and Lavender (a sweet little note) I wrote it in 10 minutes!
Thank-you Megan, the anonymous comment…and God!

Treasure in my Hand

No treasure have I found
That is more valuable
Than the one I am holding…
…a moment

No treasure have I found
That I should consider
Worth keeping, but one
…memories

Here I am, God
Holding a moment
…the seed of a memory
Thank-you

Janet~

I would not trade any of them…
…these moments

The triumphs and failures
The holding close and letting go
The broken and the beautiful
The quiet and the commotion
The pain and the pleasure
The rise and fall of moments
The measure of a life

Victoria...with the water-can.
Her mom with the B-day card;))
and 'that card' which was a treasure back then...
the little girl on it had a fuzzy red dress
and I loved it!

Like a Sparkle of Sunlight on Water...

Like a sparkle of sunlight on water
So is the life I am living
God, help me never to squander
Or take more than I am giving

Like a sparkle of sunlight on water
A ripple upon the blue sea
Time is a vaporous twinkle
On the canvas of eternity

Like a sparkle of sunlight on water
This is the scope of our breath
We ought to consider more earnestly
The Life which follows Death

Like a sparkle of sunlight on water
Our trouble and sorrow shall be
Jesus has prepared the fulfillment
Of longing, in eternity

Like a sparkle of sunlight on water
We touch upon earth’s sod
A moment, a twinkle, a whisper
Into the arms of God

Janet

Each verse is a single poem, if desired

Invisible Depths

They come...silent,
smooth and ruthless
cooling my lips
where thoughts of you burn
They come, passing,
cool and nonplussed
like rain from my fingertips
never to return
Yet, they expand
crowding silently,
in volumes
innumerable, obscene
filling the air
where your voice held me
and the Present once had been
Before
Invisibly
increasing,
increasing
in oceans unfathomable; vast
Pouring in rivers
steady, unceasing
Moments
increasing
The Past

J~

Song of Relinquishment

As surely as the rising and setting sun
Are beyond our restrained control
So are the fruits of the deeds we have done
For the Great Keeper of our souls
Shall direct the path of the winds that blow
And where every last seed will fall
In this, I am satisfied to know
The Lord God is in charge of all

In what greater hands can we place our trust
And the folly of this temporal strife?
Than in hands who, for vessels of dust
Sacrificed His very life
Then surely He never will forsake His own
For His life-blood makes us whole
And as surely as the rising and setting sun
The Lord God is in control

Into these hands of pure unfailing love
I place every weakness and shame
Pleading that in my humble form He will move
And bring glory to His hallowed name
As surely as the rising and setting of sun
His love and mercy console
I give my cares to the Three in One
For He is in control

Janet~

The sun rise was like a broad rainbow stretching up from the horizon,
and symbolizing the promise of His mercy…new every morning.
Inhale, exhale the wonder of Him, who loves us beyond all measure.

Lam. 3:21-23
Yet this I call to mind
and therefore I have hope:

Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed,
for his compassions never fail.
They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.

Something Akin to Love

Sheer sadness grips her chest
-an aching of tenderness
and something akin to fear
knowing, maybe she will never
be able to love him
the way he deserves
but, none-the-less
gladness tempers her sorrow
for the hope in opportunity
waiting, not in tomorrow
but in every breath
passing from her…
Thankfulness remains
a constant realization
for, in this life
she, by the grace of God
has been given the chance
to try.
Trying is, after all
the best anyone can do
with what we have
and she turns,
whispering
I love you
I love you
I will always
Love you

J~

Heavenly Reflection

http://poeticbloomings.com/2012/01/08/photo-prompt-prompt-37/

A heavenly reflection
Has but one Source
It cannot be gleaned from earth’s sod
Then, even life’s splashes
Are tinted by Him
If our Master Painter
Is God

Janet

Aqua-velva Coloured Dreams

http://carryontuesdayprompt.blogspot.com/2012/01/carry-on-tuesday-139.html

Lace your whispers through my mind
Touch me where no fingers trace
Let us board the wayward wind
Fly to our secret place

Maine is just a breath away
Morocco is not just a dream
We’ll scale the walls of yesterday
Darling, come and fly with me

Take the worry from our prayer
Let our tears of wanting flow
We will climb to gardens where
All the broken flowers grow

Darling, come and fly with me
Science bears no tangent part
For its logic cannot see
Destinations of the heart

Hold me closer as we dance
To love’s drifting melody
Darling, won’t you take the chance
Come and fly away with me

J~

I would have painted an ocean or a beach in that rear-view mirror, but...

Only a Dream

As I was lying in my bed
Somewhere twixt consciousness and sleep
I heard the final words you said
And all that I could do was weep

Fully awake I can’t recall
The order of the words you spoke
Perhaps you never spoke at all
Or whispered to me as I woke

As I was lying in my bed
Your final words I can’t re-trace
But there’s an echo in my head
And there are tears upon my face

J~

Captive Audience

We stood together, she and I
Beneath an orange and purple sky
As God, in shades beyond our grasp
Folded the day into the past
He didn’t need to speak a word
As all the earth His glory heard

He could have simply tucked away
The afternoon in mindless gray
But He is such an awesome God
He paints His grandeur o’er meek sod
As humble mortal hearts are stirred
In declarations without word

Out of the sky His wonders shout
His diadem no man can doubt
For there is none who can compare
To He who paints the evening air
We stood within the twilight hush
To watch Him paint without a brush

Janet

Victoria didn’t know where I was until she looked out and saw the sky…
….then she knew. She joined me with her camera (her Christmas present) and together we watched Him paint.
Awesome! We both knew there were no words able to capture this grandeur!


The heavens declare the glory of God.
The firmaments show his handiwork. Ps. 19:1

No Way...

There’s no way we can go back
No way to leap ahead
Life can be a winding track
Of temporal hope and dread
But it’s not so bad…
‘Cause I’m sure glad I know you
An’ I’m sure glad we met
An’ I’m sure glad I love you
Darling, I’m never gonna let
You go…

Life is unpredictable
In the middle of a sunny day
Storm clouds roll across the sky
An’ steal the sun away
Oh, that’s when I say…
I’m sure glad I know you
Darling, I’m sure glad we met
Oh, you know I’m gonna love you
An’ I’m never gonna let
You go

Circumstance is temporary
Moments come to pass
And all of joy or sorrow
Soon will wither like the grass
The only thing that lasts
Is the love we share together
Since the day that we first met
And I know it will weather
Every day; because I’ll never let
You go

Let the years and seasons roll
I will never let
You go...
It's the way of love
You know
And that is why
I will never let
You go...

J~

Over Fifty?

http://www.curtoons.com/funny-gag-cartoons/ (cartoon source)

Time is a ruthless painter, so I do declare
I despise my mirror but the mirror doesn’t care
If it’s the truth it’s telling well I’d beg to differ please
Cause I’m still feeling dapper but for creaking in my knees

Some mornings I sprint out of bed just like I used to do
But then a cramp assails me and I holler out for you
and like a weary soldier I limp to the closest chair
You bring an ice-pack for my back; or my derriere

I stopped counting wrinkles when the wrinkles became me
My merry eyes still twinkle, I just wish that they could see
But when I turn the lights out it’s great to be alive
Because when I am sleeping I still feel like twenty-five

Janet

Happy Birthday, Rosemary

The Harvesting of Winter

In the middle of summer’s sweet dog-days
And autumn’s noon of tumbled leaf
Winter falls; and plants the earth
In crops of pure and pristine sheaf

Then every stripped and naked sprig
That shed its robe of evergreen
And every humble, barren twig
Is dressed in winter’s dazzling sheen

The curtailed summer waits beyond
The benediction of a year
And soon the green and leafy frond
In verdant arbors will appear

Blow then, oh harsh and hungry wind
Clothe the earth in white a while
For soon your harvest must begin
It melts away beneath spring’s smile

Janet

Shadows

Tomorrow, today will be history
Its joy and its sorrow
Tugged into the past
God, give us wisdom
To use today well
Soon we will stand in the
Shadow it casts

Janet

Because of love...Observations

There is no drink that dissolves the lump in a throat.

Love suffers long, and is kind. 1 Cor. 13

The right choices are not always comfortable.

Often, they hurt.

But, they are right.

Neither God’s law nor His love is seasonal or optional.

Love bears all things…1 Cor. 13

If we are in love with others we easily love ourselves.

If we are in love with our self, we easily dislike others.

Love is a rose and the thorns.

I would suffer…but only for love.

There is no mile too far for prayer.

Prayer changes things,

but not always obviously or immediately.

Without love, faith and hope are hard.

The outpouring of love cannot remain invisible.

Love…believes all things, hopes all things.

Love never fails. 1 Cor. 13

Because of love, we can make and follow through with the right choices.

'No' the shortest, hardest word in the English vocabulary, to say.

I love you...say it to someone and mean it. It is an instant heart-lift.

J~

Recollections~ (edited re-post)

Later, as I recall this night
Well, very easily I know I might
Forget how the air was sharp with cold
And heavy with hunger for summer's gold
I'll forget the thoughts we longed to re-tell
Where the out-line of two lone shadows fell
Or how the new-moon, frozen in the sky
Was too far away to observe you and I
I might forget how the breezes died
To honor the hour where we cried
But I will never forget the blue of your eye
Or the way your voice broke, when you whispered…
...good-bye

J~

The Hidden Deep

There are hollows vast and deeper
Than the dark of midnight’s sky
There are tears of the heart’s weeping
That no one will see us cry
There is knowledge that is heavier
Than walls of uncut stone
There is more that we will never know
Than ever we have known
There are thoughts that will remain
The words we don’t know how to say
There is a God who knows all things
And He loves us anyway

J~

Cold Snap

The winsome willow of July
Where once I laid upon the grass
And listened to its tendrils sigh
Is naked now with claws of brass
In mellow August breeze it swayed
Her arches warmed with summer glee
And oft it lured me to its shade
To bask within its melody
But now its branches ache and groan
Stripped of the song it once had known

The chatter of the winding creek
Where yesterday our bare feet splashed
Has silenced; laughter waits beneath
Its sleek and polished marble path
The world is petrified and still
Beneath a crystal-coated shroud
And none can argue with the chill
Gripping each breath in frozen cloud
The only marring of the dark
Are footsteps creaking through the park

Where are the charms of pleasure’s sun?
Where is the flow of summer’s breeze?
They wait somewhere with bridled tongue
Biding their time before they tease
The icy candor from the lips
Stone-blue in winter’s frigid mime
And soon they’ll melt the fingertips
Clutching the earth in frozen time
Ah winter too, comes but to pass
Jack Frost embellishes its glass

Janet Martin

We are in a cold snap...but it is not forever.
Soon we will wander once again, those summer trails...

Peace

If all that ever was or is

Resides in His control

There is no need to worry then

But simply to console

My troubled heart with promises

Spoken by He whose pen

Writes messages upon the stars

And on the hearts of men

He paints the whisper of the dawn

In mercy’s perfect art

And in the heavens He has drawn

Our gaze to view His heart

The skies declare His glory bold

Then how much more shall we

Just as He is in days of old

He evermore shall be

If all that is or ever was

Has passed His tender gaze

There is no need to worry then

About life’s tangled maze

As surely as He holds the sun

And moon in his command

He holds the unknown of each one

In love’s most gracious Hand

Janet Martin

Leaving

When you leave...
there is no rustle of sheets,
no re-tracing on my skin
the satisfaction
where your fingers and lips caressed.
When you leave
my lips are not throbbing
from your farewell kiss
and my body is not cooling
where it curved into the
firm and pleasing warmth
of you
but oh, there is in its place
the vexing sensation
that it should be
When you leave, all I hear
is good-bye
as you hang up the phone
Outside the chill-wind moans
in tuneless sympathy

J~

At minus 17 I'm thinking of the blessing of warmth!

Linked to .http://withrealtoads.blogspot.com/

Life's Afterglow

When I shall lay me down to sleep
Forever in earth’s clutch
And all that you have left to keep
Are memories to touch
I pray that in a little while
Your tears will cease to flow
And thoughts of me will make you smile
In my life’s after-glow

Grief has a season; we must weep
And tears must have their place
But Time will heal your tender-deep
And in its soft embrace
Should thoughts of me return sometimes
Upon life’s ebb and flow
I pray that it will be a kind
And joyful after-glow

When I shall lay me down to sleep
Oh, do not weep too long
For grief is not a thing to keep
And love will make you strong
Then, in the quiet of your heart
I pray that you will know
The beauty of love’s finest art
Caught in life’s afterglow

Janet~

Linked to:http://withrealtoads.blogspot.com/

Observing the Fall of Winter's Eve

From vaults beyond the human eye
In silver chivalry
Snowflakes tumble from the sky
Like un-rhymed poetry

Beyond the glowing fireside
Twilight transforms earth’s hue
As sparkling sweeps of argent tide
Deepen to icy blue

The wind has teeth, its biting chill
Tugs weary laborer’s home
As visions of warmth and goodwill
Cheer tired feet along

The earth, a dazzling avenue
Beneath a jeweled sky
Enthrones the dream of summer blue
And wind-song lullaby

From vaults beyond daylight subdued
The winter twilight falls
To wrap the world in solitude
And winters frigid shawl


Janet~

Contemplating Kindness

Kindness is a lovely flower
One cannot force its seed
But there is nothing like the power
Of kindness touching need

Kindness is a lovely bloom
It needs no pot or bowl
Its fragrance fills the dreary room
And cheers the down-cast soul

Kindness is a stunning rose
Of pure and humble beauty
Its root in selfless visage grows
And never out of duty

Kindness is a lovely flower
All can afford its splendor
In every season, every hour
Its bloom is fair and tender


Janet

I brag unashamedly about our neighbors because we have the best in the world!
My apologies to the rest of you;))
It’s a blessing easily taken for granted, but I was reminded of this as I heard the snow-blower and Victoria asked, ‘Did you call them or are they just being kind?’
‘It’s a beautiful act of kindness,’ I replied.
“WE have the best neighbors, don’t we?’ her eyes sparkle.
“Yes, we do” I smile and pray a special blessing on them.

Contemplating Endings

http://poeticbloomings2.wordpress.com/2012/01/01/every-ending-is-a-beginning-prompt-36/

Words do not end silences

Honesty will

Having does not end yearning

Love will

Walking away does not end grudges

Forgiveness will

Knowing does not end learning

Ignorance will

Growing does not end childhood

Maturity will

Sight does not end blindness

Acceptance will

Morning does not end darkness

God will

Sudden Undoing

http://sundaywhirl.wordpress.com/

Who could have expected such numbing pain

Or that something as completely mundane

As a shovel

Leaning against the plum-tree

Would be the undoing

Of carefully protected stitches

Loss has many faces

And leaps from unwary places

The wind cannot set a-drift need

Anymore than a thousand friends

Can replace the missing of you, my love

How perpetually longing can bleed

Easily, as yarn unravels from torn sweaters

Memories spill from tear-worn letters

And mere thought cannot stop its undoing

‘Darling, remember our pledge at the plum-tree, because’

Your words blur; a shovel is futile

When trying to bury the past... and us

Janet~

The 'I Can' ABC's

I Can…

Because of

His assurance and assistance

His body and blood

His comfort and compassion

His death and His deliverance

His encouragement and endurance

His forgiveness and faithfulness

His Grace, guidance, goodness and Gift

His hope, His hands

His invitation and inspiration

His justification and joy

His kindness and knowledge

His love and Light

His mercy and might

His Name and His nearness

His omnipotence and order

His plan, promise, power, purpose and patience

His quiet and his quickened Word

His redemption and resurrection and righteousness

His salvation and strength

His tenderness and temperance

His understanding and unity

His victory and vision

His wisdom and will

His X-ample,

His yoke and His yea

His zeal and Zenith

Because of God

I can!

Janet Martin

I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Phil. 4:13