I was walking on the street one day
Just minding my own business
When a woman came upon me
And caught me in my dizziness
She asked me why I walked
Upon the sidewalk with such force
She asked where I was going
And was I truly right on course
I looked at her and wondered
What this woman was about
I looked at her and wondered
With trepidation and with doubt
How could she just accost me
With her loud obnoxious voice
How could she stop my promenade
With questions and no choice
So I answered in a voice so soft
I tried hard not to quiver
I answered her as best I could
Even though I felt a shiver
I told her that I do my best
I walk on roads with strength
I spoke to her with truth and love
While keeping at arm’s length
I spoke of worlds that I had known
And places I had been
I would have talked of love and such
If that’s what I had seen
Instead I talked of woes and hardship
Of things that I had done
I continued in my dissertation
Even as there was no sun
I tried to stop my words from flow
She’d opened up a door
I wanted her to hear my plight
I wanted so much more
But then the time came quickly
I felt heard she walked away
Perhaps the two of us might meet
On another sunny day

I am bereft
Torn apart inside
Unsure
Of what this sadness
Has to do
With me
I feel it
Authentic
Reality
Pain

Big words
Make me feel like
I am hiding
From my truth
When we use big words
It tends to inflate the ego
And make us feel
Like we are saying more
Than we really are
So
I will stay with
Small words
And hope
That I
Will
Speak
My truth

Birth and Death

I take off my garments
And what do I find
An authentic true experience
Of the limited kind
Its’s not everyday
That we find out we’re not
What we thought we were
And all the things that we got
We’ve experienced a body
Which gives us some sway
And an emotional body
From which we can’t run away
Our mind is quite nifty
Tells us what to do
It keeps right on going
Like an Everyready glue
Our heart does our feeling
At so many levels
And over our shoulders
Are an angel and devil
We wonder how we can manage
Without an instruction book or two
And yet we learn
What we have to do
We keep right on trucking
Until our work here is done
Absolved of our karma
Until we reach the end run
Then quickly and quietly
We reach the dawn of our lives
We’ve completed our journey
And end up in archives
We thought we were born
Into this human life
We thought we’d reached death
Through our struggles and strife
But instead we died here
On this crazy planet Earth
And we’ re born to carry on
Our soul comes to birth

We drove on the street
And every time
I made a mistake
You pointed it out
And when we shopped
You made sure
To tell me
When I was wrong
And in the house
You pointed out
What
I needed to do
Please remember
None of us are perfect
And we each carry with us
The things
We need
To work on
Imagine for a moment
A world
Where people
Point out our beauty
Instead of
Our
Blemishes

Body fears death
And we speak
In the silence
And I remind it
That it has held
The secrets of life
For millennium
And I honour
All
That it is
So fear not, for death comes
To us all
And we learn to cope
And move forward
Body, my body
You are one
One body, one life
And then we perish
While
The soul and mind
Live on
You are perfect, just the way
You are
And death
For most
Means life
And for you
Annihilation

In my body sits unrest
A gathering of hurricanes
And volcanoes and tornadoes
Wanting to express
And
Deep within myself
There is hope
For a better world
And I sit in the mire
Of
Both

Time to take a breath
And enjoy
All that life
Has provided
Slow down
I tell
My body
My heart
And my soul
Slow down
And smell the roses
and those are only words
for
i
can't
slow
down

Oh my goodness
It’s that time again
When I have to pay bills
And I feel the drain
It’s like all that paying
Really has no end
The money goes in
And I quickly spend
The bills pile up
I can’t buy more
Or my husband will send me
Right through the door
How do all you others
Keep up the pace
Paying bills and saving
In this crazy rat race
Would barter be easier
Save a penny or two
So much to understand
I wish I knew
So I’ll keep up the pace
As best I can
And focus on freedom
In this very life span

Brrr it’s cold
My feet can’t feel
I cover my ears
I’ve missed a meal
I can’t walk out
On ice I’ll fall
My car won’t start
And now it’s stalled
I miss my friends
Miss my old life now
I hear a noise
It’s the old snow plow
What do I do
When it gets cold
Can’t walk around
I’m not that bold
So I think I’ll try
To find my house
Will have to call out
To my very warm spouse
And ask for help
To get inside
The yellow snow
Will be my guide

Did you walk the dog
Did you make some tea
I don’t know what’s
Come over me
I don’t want to do it
I’d rather rest
Watch some TV
Not take a quest
I’m just feeling lazy
Want to stay in bed
Covers are pulled
Right over my head
I’m hiding from others
I’m hiding from self
I’d much rather be sitting
Upon a shelf
It’s easier to do nothing
Than get involved
I’d rather be hiding
And be absolved
But I do peep out
And what do I see
A friendly smile
Coming at me
Maybe it’s not so bad
Maybe I can give it a try
I think I’ll go out now
Oh well, bye bye

I can’t believe it
I’m hooked
On a Candy Crush Game
How stupid can I be
To get hooked on a game
And yet, there am I
Still trying to bust the bottles
And find the bears

There is something to the magic
Of finding
Bears
And saving them in a virtual world
And there are so many
More wonderful things I can be doing
To save the world
And, instead
I’m playing
Candy Crush
HELP

Slow down
Mind
Help me to see
And understand
What you are trying to say
I can’t reach into
The depths of my mind
When it is flowing
At such a fast pace
How do I capture
This life
That is mine
Or meant to be
When I CAN’T
SLOW
DOWN

I seem to be
At a loss for words
Don’t know
Where they’re hidden
And want to
Get them back

Perhaps
They’re just on vacation
Or taking a nap
Wherever
I need them back
In order
To  write
Some Poetry

I remind myself that we are more
than our body, mind, and soul,
and I remember to think beyond
that which I thought I already knew
For when we see through
the glasses of change
then we become
More

How are you doing
And what’s up
Checking in
Before I sup
How’s the weather
Taking walks
Stopping by
Having talks
The world is changing
Moving fast
I hold on tight
And feel the past
Don’t know where
I’ll be tomorrow
Will I be in joy
Or deep in sorrow
We can not guess
We can not plan
Our life moves on
Visit the clan
Tomorrow will come
Yesterday is gone
The present is now
I greet the dawn
I take each day
As if the last
I don’t hold on to
Things from past
Each day is new
Each day is pure
I  open my eyes
Just to assure
That I am still
Here on this earth
Know who I am
And know my worth

I watched a woman and her daughter
Going across the street
And she scuffed and she shuttled
And she kept a beat
And her mother called her out
For being a child
And she asked her to stop
Because she said she was wild
And the child looked up
With anguish not glee
Because all she wanted
Was just to be
Mothers take their job
So serious and cruel
And she thinks she'll be judged
And look like a fool
And children are children
And do what they must
And expecting adult behaviour
Is really not just
Just let them play
And learn as they go
For experience is a must
In order to grow
So just let them dance
Shuffle and move to and fro
Let them challenge and question
And then please let them go

Christmas is a time
For celebration
A time to enjoy
The family way
Eat foods that bring comfort
Sing songs that give joy
Remember to follow
A rhythm on course
For life has its times
Of up and down
So celebrate
Laugh and have joy
For that too
Shall pass
Enjoy it while it is available
Time has a way
Of speeding up
So
Take one moment at a time
And enjoy
For that too will be gone
And in its place
A newness
Of life
Christmas
A time to reflect
On
The joys of
Life

Twinkling lights
On the balcony
Herald
The coming
Of
Christmas

Hearts
Filled with love
Herald
The coming of
Christ

Red and yellow
Orange is nifty
Purple and blue
Makes something  quite rifty
Blue and yellow
Makes  green that’s iffy
And red and blue
Makes purple, that thrifty
Adding some white
Gives shades, like fifty
And adding some black
Creates shadows that are shifty
But when we use them all
In a separate kind of way
Then the rainbow they create
Is kind of witty

There are times when I have
A need to speak out
And to let others know
That I have no doubt
That I am correct
And they are not
That I know what I’m saying
And in that I am caught
I believe what I speak
I believe that I know
And I forget to remember
The seeds that I sow
If I’m always correct
And my friends are too
Then our ideas collide
And we’re stuck in the glue
Of believing that we
Are the only ones who know
That only our thoughts
Should be allowed to grow
We forget that other
Is important as well
But we keep right on going
And our heads sure do swell
So I suggest a time out
A time to breathe and reflect
On the part that we play
And how we should connect
As partners we can
Do more than as one
Working together
Can be so much fun
No more conflict
And no more commotion
Love is the answer
To the magic potion

Why does sadness
Tear at the innermost
Feelings of my be ing
Why can’t I understand
What life is all about
And what I have to do
To make it real
What truly is life
And what does it have to do
With me
I don’t
Understand

I always thought
That life was real
And now I realize
That we’re all just playing a game
Of Hide and Seek

When will I learn
To just play the game
And not get involved
In the outcome?
Or, am I supposed to feel
And connect, and become a part of
The evolution
Of
Corruption

Creativity is a process
That begins
In the thought
And ends
In the expression
Of life

Dear ......, how was I to know
That you would change
Everything I believed in
And give me
A new reason
To Live

Death
Is like a passing
From one stage of life
To another
Like a shedding
Of an outside layer
And a recognition
Of our true selves

Death
Is a letting go
Of one world
And a birth
Into another
It’s a coming of age
And a passing through
With a recognizance
Of what used to be

Death
Is a coming together
Of who we were
With who we have become
And a conglomeration
Of both
A passage
Into a new stage
With a recognition
Of what used to be

Death
Takes us from
The here
To the after life
And beyond

Death
A welcoming
Remembrance

I’m at the bottom of a hole
Sitting on the floor
Feeling as low as the concrete slab
I’m sitting on
I don’t know how I got here
Or how to get out
So..I just sit
And feel, and long for more
What could possibly
Have placed me here
And the strength I need to climb out
Just isn’t there
So I sit, and wait, and feel
And time goes by
And nothing gets done
And I’m still sitting
Cold
On the hard concrete
At the bottom of a hole
Hoping
Just hoping
That someone will come along
With a rope
And help me out
And
It doesn’t happen
So again
Here am I
Alone
Sitting on the cold concrete
Waiting
Until
Just until
I can pull my self
Out

I want to have this
I want to have that
We scream and we yell
And become quite a brat
My friend has a new house
Another has a car
What other people have
Is how we set our bar
We forget to look at
All the things that we own
We think we need more
Until we’re all alone
What we long for is such
That it changes who we are
We forget social graces
We fight and we spar
We become what we long for
Forget what is real
Stomach aches head is hurting
We feel really ill
If we’d stop for a moment
Take a breath and relax
The image of what we’ve become
Will stop us in our tracks
What we want is not real
What we long for is crap
What we’ve become will soon be
Our life long road map
So let go of the physical
Let go of the need
Look deeper inside
And grow a new seed
Be happy and grateful
For all you possess
Become more and let go of
All that not needed stress
For where you set your mind
Is where you will go
Relax and be happy
And follow your inner flow

I’m in the air
Floating
Feet not on the ground
Wondering where I am
I’m floating
Not feeling
Not aware of where I’ve been
Or where
I’m meant to be
Just floating
Floating
Floating

Living a life
Of not feeling
And having problems
Attaching to life
And those around me
All that abuse
That kept me
From being myself
And now
Sometimes
I float
Have trouble keeping
My feet on the ground
So many years
So much time
So far away from the abuse
And yet
I’m still
In it

Diwali is here
Light and darkness have their fight
And the light will win

We’re looking and we’re seeking
And we truly think we’ll find
The answer to  our questions
Our true self to be defined
We look in many places
And hope others will give us truth
When the answer to all our queries
Is actually in our  youth
Be kind be good don’t run away
Be friendly as you play
Look nice keep clean don’t speak to strangers
And find some time to pray
Please respect others don’t talk when  you eat
Say please and thank you for all
Don’t scrunch don’t shout finish what’s on your plate
Please stand up very tall
So much is asked of us when we are young
We try to do them all
We fidget we forget we balk and shout
And answer nature’s call
To be good is really simple
If we remember these three words
Do good be good be one
And practice these three verbs
For in doing we make changes
In being we understand
The most import lesson is be one
This is the one that God has planned
That we understand that we are all the same
No matter the colour or walk
That we treat each other as truly our own
If we learn to walk the talk
Finding our self means finding other
That’s all a part of the game
To find out that we are more than us
That we are truly all the same
So take your part in the game of life
Walk tall and show your face
For who you are is what we need
It’s all the good lords Grace

Eyes open!
Eyes open!
My body can not move
Breathing slowly
What is happening?
Rich colours
Many scenes
Going so fast
Catch them
Catch them
And then
I awake
It was all
Just a dream

Writing a poem
Is like speaking my mind
Only, it slows me down
Until words I can find
I take my time
And speak my truth
And sooner or later
It comes back to my youth
When I lived freely
Not a care in the world
Played all day on the street
Just jumped and twirled
Until tired I fell
To the ground in a heap
Laid my head down just so
And soon fell asleep
And dreamed of a world
Where I could play
With freedom from strife
And fear pushed away
But life is not like that
When we get old
There are things to accomplish
We can’t be so bold
So some of the dreams
Are put away for a while
And things I must do
I begin to compile
Until all has been done
And my time here is over
Then play, I can do
Until time to changeover

Everything feels so real
In my dreams
I can be anyone and anything
I can soar with the birds
And walk on the seas
I can show courage
And great defeat
I run from nothing
And am there to help
I am so much more
In my dreams
And yet
It is not real
Or is it?
Which is real
And which the illusion?

Someone in my house
Painting the walls
And bringing order
To the chaos
Caused by
A leak
From upstairs

How much simpler
It might have been
If someone
Had remembered
To turn off
Their
Water
Tap

Life is what happens
As we are living it
We think we are planning for the future
When, in fact
The future has prepared herself
For us
We find a soft blanket to fall on
While we struggle to climb the mountain
We sleep
As our soul journeys forward
We feed our bodies
When we should be feeding
Our souls
We climb
When we should be resting
And rest
When we should
Be wandering
Through life
Always just
A little off
And always
On the mark

*** that sounds so good
Let’s go out now and buy
A steak a pizza a hamburger
Appetites reach for the sky
We think we’re hungry
We like to taste
The food is wonderful
Can’t let it waste
And so we hunger
And so we hide
We get much bigger
We’re growing wide
And still we want
Just more and more
We fill our pantries
And run to the store
We never fill
That empty void
We keep on eating
And get annoyed
Our doctors tell us
It must stop
We tell him not
To be a cop
We hang on to
Our sugary treats
Nothing can get past
What we eat
And suddenly one day
We start to feel
A little anxious
And start to reel
And realize that
The food we eat
Is making us sick
It’s not a treat
But poison yummies
Which we detect
Our bodies soon
Feel the effect
And suddenly
We understand
These very wise words
Which we command
We eat to live
Not live to eat
Once we get that
Our health complete

Emptiness
Gnawing at me from the inside
Saying
Feed me, feed me
And the pain only subsides
When it is fed

Overeating
Stops the feelings
That come from
Deep within
The gut wrenching
Pain
That I no  longer
Want to feel
And
It follows me
And I feed it

Is life really
All I think it is
Can I truly make a difference
Like others tell me
Why am I here
The neverending question
Of who we are
And why

Everyone needs to know
That they are loved
And that they belong
To some small space
On Earth

Everyone needs to feel
Like they’re life purpose
Fits in
To a larger
Plan

Everyone moves forward
On their life
Path
Knowing
And feeling
And living
Like they
For just a moment
Are as important
As the next

Everyone is part of a larger plan
Of existence
And
None of us
Knows
That
Plan

I see with new eyes
And hear with new ears
All
That is about me
And in me
In an expression
Of outer
And inner growth
And knowing
And
Wisdom
And I
Am but a puppet
In
It’s
Expression

Family is a state of mind
Family is an affair
Were meant  to keep together
And sometimes we stop and stare
At others who we wonder about
We want to look and learn
What is it that keeps families alive
Lets’ talk and let us yearn
For that which some take so for granted
And that which can be true
A family is people together
From them you take your cue
You work as one you talk as one
You do things all together
It is so simple to chug along
In all kind of sorts of weather
And when it gets too difficult
To keep  your mind in sane
You start all over and try to win
And do it all again
For family just means people together
Who are working together as one
family can be a mom and dad
And children playing under the sun
Family means support when we are down
It means cheering up when things aren’t right
It means talking and caring and coming around
When life is holding us tight
Our ancestry tells us the we are whole
Our lineage binds us together
It means we keep hold when things are not right
And even in sunny weather
We may think families have to be perfect
When in truth so much can go wrong
A broken family is very painful
And many have spoken in song
Families take courage and great strength and pride
It takes lots to make it go right
But when we all get together
We certainly are quite the site
Families can be so many things
We congregate, join, and compete
But when day is done and we’re on our own
Our family makes us complete

Family
Coming together to make sure
That everyone is safe
And happy
And supported
In their life choices

Family can come
From a variety of compilations
Not always blood related
But heart related
And willing to take the step
To compassion and caring

Family
A unit of love
Support
Compassion
Completion

Haiku
Family as one
Coming together in love
Holy unity