The True Chapters of Life

Legacy of an adopted child

(Author Unknown)

poem-reading

Once there were two women

Who never knew each other.

One you do not remember,

The other you call mother.

Two different lives

Shaped to make yours one.

One became your guiding star,

The other became your sun.

The first gave you life

And the second taught you to live it.

The first gave you a need for love

And the second was there to give it.

One gave you a nationality,

The other gave you a name.

One gave you a seed of talent,

The other gave you an aim.

One gave you emotions,

The other calmed your fears.

One saw your first sweet smile,

The other dried your tears.

One gave you up —

It was all that she could do.

The other prayed for a child

And God led her straight to you.

And now you ask me

Through your tears,

The age-old question

Through the years:

Heredity or environment

Which are you the product of?

Neither, my darling — neither,

Just two different kinds of love

The Labyrinth

“Each person is no simple, one-dimensional self. There is a labyrinth within our soul. What we think and desire often comes into conflict with what we do. Below the surface of our conscious awareness, a vast, unknown rootage determines our actions. The unconscious is a powerful and continuous presence. Every life lives out of and struggles with this inner night, which cast it’s challenging and fecund shadows over everything we do and think and feel. We are earthen vessels that hold the treasure. Yet, aspects of the treasure are darker and more dangerous than we allow ourselves to imagine. But, when the unconscious becomes illuminated, it’s darker forces no longer hold us prisoner.”

-John O’Donohue

Choose Joy

Choose joy. Choose it like a child chooses the shoe to put on the right foot, the crayon to paint a sky. Choose it at first consciously, effort fully, pressing against the weight of a world heavy with reasons for sorrow, restless with need for action.

Feel the sorrow, take the action, but keep pressing the weight of joy against it all, until it becomes mindless, automated, like gravity pulling the stream down its course; until it becomes an inner law of nature. If Viktor Frankl can exclaim “yes to life, in spite of everything!” — and what an everything he lived through — then so can any one of us amid the rubble of our plans, so trifling by comparison. Joy is not a function of a life free of friction and frustration, but a function of focus — an inner elevation by the fulcrum of choice.

Delight in the age-salted man on the street corner waiting for the light to change, his age-salted dog beside him, each inclined toward the other with the angular subtlety of absolute devotion.

Delight in the little girl zooming past you on her little bicycle, this fierce emissary of the future, rainbow tassels waving from her handlebars and a hundred beaded braids spilling from her golden helmet.

Delight in the snail taking an afternoon to traverse the abyssal crack in the sidewalk for the sake of pasturing on a single blade of grass.

Delight in the tiny new leaf, so shy and so shamelessly lush, unfurling from the crooked stem of the parched geranium.

Lara Seven Gryffn

What does this mean?

The shape of each soul is different; spiritual clothing one person wears can never fit the soul of another. Each destiny has a unique curvature and must find its own spiritual belonging and direction. I’m a spiritual search is too intense and hungry the soul stays hidden. The soul was never meant to be seen completely. Celtic mysticism recognizes that rather than trying to expose the soul or offer it our fragile care we should let the soul find us and care for us. Then, when you’re soul awakens, your destiny becomes urgent with creativity. – John O’Donohue

Broken Ladder

Hunting us down like animals it’s gotten insane
You call us animals but who’s really untamed
Seems to me like you’re the one fanning the flames
You can only put so much water in a cup
But when the cup overflows things will erupt…
You say I’m violent but I refuse to be silent
You may have just awoken the sleeping giant

Zimmerman walks not held accountable
The odds of that happening were insurmountable
How in the hell was he not held accountable

African Methodist Episcopal Church
9 killed in cold blood
Oh’ let’s not forget the Katrina flood

Michael Brown was shot to death
Left on the ground uncovered during his last breath

Dontre Hamilton shot 14 times doesn’t seem logical to a normal mind

Eric Garner illegal choke hold we all knew how that would unfold (Not guilty)

John Crawford -Toy BB Gun it really hurts how that story was spun (Not guilty)

Ezell Ford – Mentally ill took shots to the back are you for real (Not guilty)

Akai Gurley -Killed in the staircase do you still want me to believe it’s not about race

Tamir Rice – Killed for a Toy – Am I supposed to walk around full of joy?

Jerame Reid – Passenger in a car don’t you think this has gone a little too far?

Eric Harris – 70 yr. old officer “mistook” his own gun for a Taser
Just when you think it couldn’t get any crazier

I could go on and list more names but sometimes I feel like it’s just too insane
So the next time you say a Black life doesn’t matter
I guess it doesn’t too you because you’ve never had to climb a broken ladder.

In memory of Ahumaud Arbery

© by Eric Little

A Forever Friendship

Words fall silent from my lips, at this poignant moment of human intensity

As a burning orange orb glides slowly towards its end on the horizon

Touch is all I have for his atrophied, scared, ravaged body resting in front of me

Words seem frail and dumb at that second. My blood runs blue and my heart breaks red

Can my fingers reach his soul?   Will he know the depths of gratitude I possess for his inestimable friendship?

Can the water from my eyes seep into his essence?  Can he can feel my love for him?

A glowing white moon gently rises from the outer edge of eternity

And a divine bright red, pink and purple friendship forever colors our sky.

My dear friend Larry, left this earth on October 1, 2020 at 6:42 a.m.

Tiny Weeny Greenies

This wonderful story was written by my dear friend, Larry Polsky who sadly left this earth on October 1, 2020 due to melanoma.

In the forest lived teeny weeny green people. They lived and played with each other in the grass and flowers.

One morning a teeny weenie greenie named Alfalfa told his parents he was going on a walk

They said “Don’t go too far.  Remember not to go beyond the green. And be back for lunch”

Alfalfa walked and walked and walked. Eventually he came upon an area that looked different.  Everything was no longer green. “I’ll just go a little further”, he said to himself.

He walked on into the non-green area and was amazed at what he saw.  It was bright and energetic, but in a different way than green.

All of sudden he saw another little boy.  The boy was also this non green bright color. “Hi”, he said, “I’m Cherry.  Where are you from?”.  “I’m Alfalfa.  I live where everything is green.”

“Let me show you around”, said Cherry. They walked and ran around. Cherry pointed out different things, all the bright non green color. “This is our stream, that is our school, and here is my house.”

They walked in and Cherry’s parents were there. “This is my new friend Alfalfa”.  “Hi Alalfa.  We are Mr. and Mrs Rose.  Where do you live?”  “I live over there where everything is green”.  “That’s wonderful. We have never met anyone from there,” said the parents.

Would you like some lunch?”  they said. “Oh! My mom said I should be home for lunch.  But maybe it’s ok.”

So they sat down and ate.  Spaghetti in Tomato sauce, and Cranberry juice.  Then, alfalfa said “Where I live everything is green.  Here everything is not green. Why is that?”

“Everything here is red. It always has been,” said Cherry. “That’s right.  Since as far back as we know, its been red with red people,” said Mrs Rose.

“Cool. I like red.  It’s so bright and fun,” said Alfalfa.  “I think I will go home now.”  “Can I go with him?” said Cherry.  “Yes, you can walk him to end of the red,” said Mrs Rose.

As they walked outside there were two children playing.  When they saw Alfalfa one said, “Hey who are you?  Teenie weenie greenies don’t belong here!”

Alfalfa felt upset and didn’t know what to say.  Cherry said, “Chili, this is Alfalfa. He is my friend. “ My dad said that the greens don’t belong. They are troublemakers,” said Chili.

Other kids heard the noise and came over.  Then Chili pushed Alfalfa to the ground.  When Alfalfa fell he cut his hand. 

Cherry said, “Look his blood is red just like mine. We are all the same inside.”

All the red kids gathered around to see.  “You are right!” said Chili. 

And now they were all friends for life.

1 2 3 7