To my children, I write some advice
To help get you through hard times
When burdened with worry or strife
Seek God and peace you will find

The strength of His power is stronger
Than any weakness you'll ever face
And the depth of His love is greater
Than those that feel the need to hate

If ever you find yourself all alone
With no one to stand by your side
He will be there if you seek Him
To wipe the tears you have cried

Sunday eve , feasting on 'Shepherds pie' , starry transmissions from a changing , churning southern sky ... Steeped black tea carried on the winds of tempestuous July , quietly lost in the birth of twilight
The juvenile , search light , embellished night , curious remaining songbirds
and front porch lovers
Tree frog , Katydid sonatas , apropos of the Georgia summer* ..

I need a poem
That will make me smile
A poem to take away the pain

I need a poem
That works instantly
Because nothing is the same

I need a poem
That breathes on my heart
And takes my breath away

I don't need a poem
Not a single one
I just need to know I am loved

Memories are dangerous weapons that cause their users to bleed

black as night
staining everything he touches
filling and damaging the lungs
of that minor miner girl
who was just trying
to find the diamonds within him

but what she didn't know
was that he had only one diamond
it was the minor miner girl
and he gave her away
so now she feels poor
but someday she'll see
that she is a rarity

dear minor miner girl
I am but a jewelry cleaner
but I love you always.

Today I went walking
To go buy some treats
And on the way there
Down these familiar streets
Something in me shifted
Something had changed
Maybe that  something was
Simply nothing but me
I grew up here in this small town
Just for two short years
But to me you are home
And I cannot let go
But something in me was
No longer the same
At first I thought nothing of it
As I walked to the small store
For soda and candy
And ice cream galore
Bit on my way out
This nagging consumed me
I pushed it down
Into the depths of my mind
For a moment
I didn't want to think about
The growth and the change
Because I wanted everything to be the same
I don't want to leave behind childhood bliss
When my biggest problem was
Remembering who's weekend it is
I miss the simplicity of having no fear
But I know that that girl
Has long since disappeared
I was able to fight off all of these thoughts
Until I had almost reached my old front walk
I saw a woman walking away
From the cul-de-sac I'd been through
So many times
However
I didn't think I was seeing someone else
Because I got lost
In watching myself
I saw a child walking toward me
Not that woman in a sweatshirt
I saw the sheepgrass grown too high
And an adult version of me
Walking my way
Like some sort of warning
And I heard a voice
Like a scene in a movie
Telling me to move on
And release all my agony
She sounded just like me
At seven, fifteen, and twenty
Telling me nothing was wrong
Unless I let it be
As I write these words
Recounting my evening stroll
I realize I am never alone
I am the only thing in my way
Nothing is concrete
And sometimes things change
But I control me
And I think I'll enjoy it this way

Will you call me in the winter
When I need someone around?
The nights are so long and cold
And the days have nothing to offer

I never thought that I'd grow old
Nor vulnerable on the streets
There were places I used to go
Now I'd be robbed and left for dead

Now as my old heart tires
And my legs grow weak and stiff
I can't be bothered with another winter
So why don't you call me then?

                                             By Phil Roberts

Dear Poet Friends, Delhi is well known for its Dust Storms during the hot and humid month of May & June, and the absence of rain! This poem was composed in the Month of May 2008, and posted on ‘Poetfreak.com'.  Hope you like the same. Thanks, - Raj
    
                  DUST  STORM
All through the sultry and humid day,
The sky had grown angry and reddish grey!
And the evening suddenly became very still,
As an eerie silence crept there in!
When suddenly from the sky came rushing out,
Making a prolonged whistling and gushing sound,
As if some beastly hounds have been let out, -
There came the raging, ravaging, Dust Storm!

Lashing the tree tops and smashing window
panes ,
Uprooting old trees by road side and lanes!
Ravaging and railing with its destructive force,
Blew the angry and relentless dust storm!
As papers and packets and old withered leaves,
Flew around like thread-less kites on this hot
Summer's eve!
All my collected thoughts, desires, and dreams,
Flew helter-skelter with the winds up high,
Like rudderless ships without direction,
With the whirlwind in its maddening motion.
With dust in my hair, in my eyes and mouth,
As the sand storm raged all around and about!

When after some time like a spent out force,
The storm abated as night drew close.
With dust in my hair, in my eyes and mouth,
But a pleasant coolness prevailed all around!
Dust Am I, And To Dust I Shall Return, **
Once I wake up from my Earthly trance!
And with the raging dust storm I shall rage
one day,
To join up in its maddening dance in the month
of May!
                    ---Raj Nandy, New Delhi.