#hopethroughhardship
_Life is a wonder_ —no wonder I still wonder
how I made it to today. Life is what you make of it —
not like a butler who serves, but a self-made shape
you forge from struggle and grace.
We judge with our eyes, but on Judgment Day,
it won’t be our eyes that matter. And when that day
arrives —whether we walk or run to heaven’s gate —
know that love won't wear the form you tried to fit
into every heart.
To love in part means sometimes we must depart —
leave behind space wide enough for stars to breathe.
The emptiness you find may feel vague, but it’s where
meaning stirs quietly, and the hopes you laid on a lover
might be the very hope that led you astray.
We leave this place as ashes — but never to rest
in an ashtray. Because even dust has destiny,
and fire never forgets what it once warmed.
_Life is a wonder_ — in both a good and bad way.
And maybe that’s enough.
Jul 26, 2025
Jul 26, 2025 at 2:08 PM UTC
Refrains of Joy
Soldiers Returning from Northern Ireland
Through Ulster’s streets they tread once more,
Silent shadows by the door.
The Troubles etched on weary brows,
Their hearts adrift, yet none allows.
In uniforms worn, their youth concealed,
By sights of sorrow, wounds unhealed.
Through whispers thick with midnight’s grace,
They mask their truths, no trace, no face.
"No matter the storm," their souls declare,
"Let joy arise, though hearts despair."
For life’s gift, fragile yet profound,
Deserves no less than hope unbound.
Brothers in arms, steps firm yet fleeting,
Their truths unsaid in each meeting.
The guns are silenced, yet within,
A battle rages, unspoken din.
Home’s embrace, a comfort strained,
As echoes of their watch remain.
The laughter of a child, a fleeting balm,
A thread of peace, a fragile calm.
They recall green hills where peace once stayed,
Before the walls of conflict swayed.
Yet in their hearts, a hymn persists,
Of life, of light, through murky mists.
The Troubles may have marked their years,
Yet they return, suppressing tears.
A soldier’s refrain, steadfast and wise,
Through storm, through strife, let joy arise.
By Paul Baldry (LongJohn)
Feb 20
Feb 20, 2026 at 12:22 PM UTC