PostPoems Be Artistic. Be Creative. Be Inspired!

I am grateful 

(heeding the words of Martin Luther King)

when it comes to this life

knowing, exactly, what to choose

exactly what I can bring

To try no matter what happens…

no matter when or how…or where…

to choose love

because hate 

is much too hard a burden to bear.

I am grateful for having learned this simple lesson

that Jane Goodall embodied so beautifully…

When I show respect and love for other living things

they will return that respect and love to me

This elderly couple walked into the bookstore…

smiling at one another and holding hands

52 years after saying ‘I do’ and exchanging wedding bands.

Since they were strangers to me…

when it comes to their 52 years together

you’re probably wondering…how in the world I might know….

It’s simple…they were celebrating their anniversary…

and the old man told me so!

It could have been the excitement of their 52 years together

or the Margaritas they shared to celebrate…

but the story of their life together…that old man couldn’t wait to relate.

His wife smiled as she gently chastised him

“Robert,” she said, “the details of our life he doesn’t want to hear.”

Since the store was empty at the time I said,  “Go ahead Robert…I’m all ears.”

So in an empty store on a Saturday night…I heard in all its glory….

with his wife, Linda, by his side

the condensed version of their life together…their personal love story.

When he finished…after allowing me full access

I could see they’ve lived a life filled with love, and joy and happiness. 

Just before they left…Robert took me aside….

as Linda waited by the door…with her hands upon her hips.

“I knew the first time we kissed,” he whispered,

“I wanted her kiss to be the last kiss to ever touch my lips.”

As they exited the store…smiling…hand in hand

I couldn’t help but feel a thrill…

because I’ve never heard a better definition of love…

and I doubt I ever will

*A note to Boe, the store owner, 

If you’re reading this…do not fret at how much time their story took…

because before they left the store…they also bought a book!

A blessing for the entire world…a blessing for every day

whatever God you pray to…if you choose to pray

Or whatever your spiritual predilection or perception…

May that entity accept, love and bless the entire world

With no exclusions…no exceptions.

And while blessing everyone in the places where they dwell

Will that entity allow everyone to love who they love as well.

It isn’t always easy 

and in today’s world it is often hard to do

But I am grateful that I try my best 

to choose love in everything I do

I imagine when we look into our hearts…when we probe the corners of our soul…

we’ll find moments in our life…over which we have no control.

Moments that help shape the person in the mirror every day we see…

moments left entirely in the hands of destiny.

For all those skeptics out there who totally disagree….

remember…we didn’t choose to be born…we didn’t choose our family.

We didn’t choose the color of our hair, our eyes…if we’d need glasses just to see

We didn’t choose how tall we’ll be, the foods we like…or the gender we will be.

And though it’s true part of who we are is influenced by our destiny

we also get to choose the kind of person we want to be.

We are free to make these choices…the ones I’m thinking of

We can choose compassion, acceptance, generosity, kindness.

We can choose happiness and love.

Choosing to see how everything created has importance, value and worth.

Choose to love every member on our extended family…Earth.

We may not be able to control every aspect of our lives… 

but in the end we can take pride….

knowing the choices we make are easier…

when love is on our side.

And for those who for one reason or another 

have decided to choose hate…

the beauty of choice is…

when you decide you’re choosing love

it never is too late.

May we be blessed to have people in our life

Young and old…

who lo and behold…

when they speak…

we only hear the singing of the birds

and when they whisper in our ears…

it is our heart that hears their words

He finds himself smiling a lot these days 

like when another day is over…as the sunlight begins to fade…

and he thinks about the day…and all the memories they’ve made.

Or when they take a morning walk along the shore…

and he thinks of all the memories in life they’ve made before.

But as wonderful as old memories are…now…in moments he’s awake

what makes him smile even more…are the memories they’ve yet to make.

Those moments that await them just around the bend…

the pages of their book…the chapters…waiting to be penned. 

Yes, in a life that’s filled with poetry…

what brings a smile to his face at night…

before sleep closes his eyes…

are the poems they’ve yet to write.

When he was young the way his Grandma and Granddad loved each other

was easy for him to see…

He assumed the way they loved was the way love was supposed to be.

But as he grew and observed more of the world…

and he watched his Grandma and Grandad…

he realized they had something special…

a love many people only wish they had.

“Grandma and Granddad,” he asked them one day,

“The way you two act together is beautiful I must confess.

Can you tell me what makes your love so special?

What’s the recipe for your success?”

“For us it is quite simple, they said.

There are three things we never want to forget.

The same three things we do today that we’ve done since the day we met.”

“From the moment we took our first walk together….

when alone along that shore we strolled…

we felt happy knowing we were holding…

the only hand we ever want to hold.” 

“Still do.”

“The first time we kissed we closed our eyes.

The reason is as simple as it seems.

We began to imagine a life together.

We closed our eyes and began to dream.”

“Still do.”

“We remember our first kiss…how it made us both feel the same way

How for a moment we couldn’t talk…because that kiss took our breath away.

“Still does.”

So there it is… Grandma and Grandad’s recipe for love… 

a recipe tried and true…

It’s a recipe they used when they were younger…

And if you ask them they will tell you 

it’s a recipe they still do.