For my 2016 writing project, I’ve decided to write a single line of poetry every day for an entire year. Below, is December’s poem. Enjoy!

A year in the rearview.
A solitary month remains.
We must make the most of this opportunity.
Do now what could be left for next year.

I decided to love.
Chosen above all else.
I chose to be happy.
My reflection smiling back at me.

Be selfish in this moment.
Be better.
Devote yourself to something bigger.
An actual member of the human race.

I choose to give.
My fellow man deserves giving.
The world needs more of us.
These are armies I can support.

Lay down your arms.
Pick up love instead.
Confront the new year boldly.
Do so with bravery.

You don't need a revolution.
Lay claim to yourself.
Hold dear those you love.
Hold more, if you can.

Those are actions that can save the world.
Some will laugh.
Others will mock.
Let them.

They are the problem.
We are the solution.
We are the new year.

Life, such a splendid puzzle,
It's brilliant design never ceases.
Our dreams provide the game,
And fate provides the pieces.
And I dream..
And in my dreams I am lost,
Seeking a refuge I cannot find.
I awaken with a strange emptiness,
And then she..Comes to mind.
And then I see it..
I see through her brush strokes,
What in my words she can feel.
Through lessons of life, love, and loss,
Like stars..We collide, and heal.
And we connect..
Like branches of the same tree..We connect,
Reaching out toward the endless sky.
Joined by roots born of wonder,
The sun shines love, and passes by.
And I yearn..
Like a broken swan that yearns to fly,
Who's dream is but a feather.
Like an empty, barren, forgotten sky,
Who's dream is but the weather.
And together..
With my battered sails and her wounded love..
We float this sea together.
Connected by the sweet, awful Grace,
Of clever God's that just knew better.
And I hear it..
I hear it calling..
Like the shore calls out the sea
A life spent clumsily chasing the tides..
Now the tides..They chase me.
And it's coming..
Like a band of wild haired stallion's, it's coming
Chasing sweetly the dark of night
Stars beaming overhead so brightly
Not a troubled cloud in sight.
And so I wait..
As the lone wolf waits on the moon,
To light gently, the path of its roam
As the loon cries beautifully in the night for its beloved..
I wait for her to come home.

You never get accustomed to saying goodbye,
not to family, not to friends... It never ceases
to be sad watching them leave, even when you
understand that they have to go... You never
stop yearning for an extra second that won't be enough
and through sparkly tears laugh... You never stop
feeling empty just after someone dear in your life
leaves even when you knew they are going leave
as soon as they came but then that's human nature...
We are not trees to just drop the old leaves of connection
or to forget the roots beneath the soils of family and friendship...
We ain't flowers to just watch the beautiful petals fall
because we were created to understand and feel
for every connection we create in our universe, be it
an electric charge, a glimpse of a smile, a second of eye
contact, a handshake, a wink... it's never about how long
you've known each other, the length only makes it harder...
You never get used to saying goodbye, you never just let go
of the touch, the palms may unclasp, but the hearts remain
entwined... That's why we miss people like you brother...
Safe Journey Androcles Nyonje, may you always remember
that we love you, and like Karen Kingsbury wrote in my favorite novel "Oceans Apart'
"Love you" means we are always together even when Oceans apart...
So know that even when latitudes apart, we'll always be close to you at heart...
Bon Voyage... and come again bombolini

overnight the skies
sent down full buckets of rain
this morn all is wet