Birthdays pass
by robert martinBirthdays pass,
I get married,
My children,
Grow up
And leave.
And one day they call,
Letting you know,
Grandchildren are near.
And I remember,
How I used to be so shy, and unsure of myself,
My world,
My path,
Was not that special,
So I went about this life,
From place to place as a tourist,
But looking back now I see how
Lit up under the passing moons
And stars and tides,
And I,
I have walked this path,
I was meant to walk,
Doing the things I was meant to do,
And things are unfolding,
As they are meant to unfold,
It was a path,
Gilded in gold,
And lit up in neon.
Copyright 2010, Robert S. Martin
Jun 22, 2011
robert martin I am a school teacher, married have two kids, a red bone hound, a cat and live on the coast. I love to write about things around me, relationships. I ...
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18 written
-- May 14, 2010
and im glad i crossed paths with your poem..heartening and reassuring to know that the unfolding is as should be..thanks robert
robert martin May 14, 2010
Thanks for the wonderful comment.
marlene dunham May 23, 2010
Very nice. I loved the strength it ends with and builds up to. Isn't that what Birthdays are about - growing up and learning. Very good poem Robert.
(It sounds like your wife left with your children. Not sure if you meant that.)
(It sounds like your wife left with your children. Not sure if you meant that.)
robert martin May 23, 2010
Thanks,
No I didn't intend that. I reread and see that it could be read that way. I'll look at it again.
Thanks
No I didn't intend that. I reread and see that it could be read that way. I'll look at it again.
Thanks
Bathsheba May 27, 2010
I love this write Robert - It shows a certain maturity towards the true meaning of life - I doff my hat to you and wish you well -:)
james robert May 29, 2010
universal truth in a picture well painted...enjoyed it!
robert martin May 29, 2010
Thank you so much. I write about life as it unfolds to me, and am always surprised. Thanks!
Rob Jun 7, 2010
Really like this
robert martin Jun 7, 2010
Thanks, I appreciate it. I will be a Granddad in about 3 weeks. First time.
Helios Rietberg Jun 12, 2010
Amazing. I'm so glad I read your poem... heart-warming and uplifting, it reminds me of what I live for. Thank you for sharing this!
robert martin Jun 12, 2010
This poem, this realization truly did not hit me until I got the news of my daughter being pregnant. She is due in about 2 weeks. God bless.
Peter Sierant Jun 15, 2010
I don't usually get emotional, but after taking my two kids and dropping them off for camp, this really hit hard.
robert martin Jun 15, 2010
Thanks, I never cried much at all till I turned 40, went through this midlife thing. I cry all the time now through relatedness, connectedness with my fellow travelers of this life. Best regards.
John Jul 22, 2010
Robert I know i'm going to like all your poems when i finally stop writing and start reading more; I know because we are so similar, the meditation, the number of children ( i have two girls), living on the coast, we have two cats to match your dog, etc. etc. I wasn't a teacher but I drove a school bus almost twenty years
the great majority of that for special ed kids in a bigger wheel chair bus. Great write, great outlook on things!
the great majority of that for special ed kids in a bigger wheel chair bus. Great write, great outlook on things!
robert martin Jul 23, 2010
Thank you john i feel the same way. I too have been preoccupied with writing. When writing flows go with it because you or least i may not write a line for 6 months. What kind of meditation?
John Jul 23, 2010
robert , i started meditating on my own from Alan watts instructions. then a few years later started a more formal practice and got some instruction at S.F. Zen center, So that waas Soto Zen, then I sat with a Korean Zen group in Berkeley for 2 or 3 years and finally I sat with a group in the town I live in now which had a Vipassana founder and teacher (also a lot of Zen guest teachers his wife is a Zen master) buty he dropped the group so we have been through a couple of Viapassana teachers. I haven't sat with the group for almost a year now but i keep in touch. Now I am a big fan of Nisargadatta an Indian Guru who died maybe 50 years ago some of his talks were translated into a book called "I am That" and that is my bible along with Byron Katie's "A Thousand Names For Joy.
Dorothy Anderson Mar 28
Yes, it is nice to look back upon our path and life, and realize how meaningful it all can be :-)
Mary Stanworth 3 days ago
fab read....we have to believe the paths we are given are the right ones:)
victoria 6 hours ago
such a wonderful snapshot of years passed and a little peek into what may yet unfold, granddad..... wow, being the broody type I am so looking forward to grandparent-hood.....
robert martin 4 hours ago
Thanks victoria, I love to write positive pieces. They seem to just come out. This was one of those little poems that took legs. Thanks.
edward ryles 5 hours ago
Sir, you walk the walk ... and talk the talk ... and live the life ...
and give us all here on HP great poems to read.
and give us all here on HP great poems to read.
robert martin 4 hours ago
Thanks edward. I appreciate your wonderful comments. I am a school teacher, and around the second week of June I will be off two months. Maybe I will be able to do more of what I love-- I was going to say write but it is more like emote. Thanks!
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