July 12: Wider Point of View

Wider Point of View

You don’t need to be told, if you understand:

You can see the situation, and you try to lend a hand.

When love guides your life, you don’t need many rules,

Though you might need a blueprint, and a standard to follow.

So many strictures are strictly for fools,

Who won’t heed them anyhow:  It’s too much to swallow;

Who can’t see the point when their bones have grown hollow!

So much to ignore, and so much to analyze:

Not knowing why they’re here, they take cover in their lies.

So to keep ourselves on track; to keep ourselves protected,

We’ve got locks with computer codes, wired to electric fences.

We’ve lost sight of reality; of how we’re all connected,

And we can’t control our mind, or come to our senses.

Then sadly, these have to be the confusing consequences.

Our barriers make us angry, but we’ve got to be cool:

It’s the dealing with life’s obstacles:  That’s what we learn in school.

Our minds must be free from life’s chains and locks,

And traverse the pathways to the reasons why:

Peaceful as a giant, and sly as a fox,

We start to view the world from a place on high

And gain the strength and wisdom that we need to simplify.

July 13: Pathways To The Street

Pathways to the Street

There are many pathways to giving up

In games where we no longer care to compete,

He sits on a stairway and holds out his cup,

Finding his place to exist – on the street.

Wild in the spirit and up for adventure,

Looking for love and living for song,

Ever at war against social censure,

And no idea how to get along . . .

What began in good fun became a crutch;

Addictions to drugs and to alcohol,

What it took to engage became too much.

He's a prisoner outside the walls.

Chorus:

We all have to struggle to get what we need,

As we cope with our own deficiencies.

We’ve all ignored what we’ve needed to heed,

Been given a mandate that we couldn’t concede;

Suffered the blindness in somebody’s greed,

Or are stymied by daft inefficiency.

So he drifted.  He couldn't see he was lost,

While his chances began to run out,

He dabbled in dreams; In goals to be tossed

‘Cause they carried such worry and doubt.

His thoughts became plagued with resentment

Against anyone’s expectations,

To hide the shame in his lack of commitment.

He made stories of manipulation.

He became an accomplice to a petty crime,

And fearing he would get the blame,

He hopped a freight; found work in a mine,

Where he went by a different name.

Chorus

He met a lonely man who had worked so hard,

But never felt himself succeed,

Until finally, from years of disregard,

He was swept away in his need:

A sensitive person, who, having been attacked,

Could not face the world again.

On a construction project, he hurt his back,

And sought healing though the use of his pen.

At one time, he'd made it in the mining business,

But for lack of ore, the mines had to close.

He wanted his fortune and nothing less,

And so his possibilities froze!

Chorus

The two became friends, and though both deranged,

Compassion between them was given.

Easing their torment; allowing for change,

They could laugh at the lives they'd been living!

They were touched by a woman with a heart so pure,

Subsisting as a church volunteer,

Who finds sexual passion amongst the poor,

Unscathed by Want or fear,

Who said, "As long as you’ve got a place to crash,

You have freedom to sit where it’s sunny.

They look away.  Others treat you like trash.

It’s sad, but people are funny –

"Stuck in possessions they have to maintain,

With so much feeling that they just can’t relate,

It’s their own inner pain that makes them disdain

My joy and my pathetic fate."

Chorus

July 15: Shelter

Shelter

My shelter is my faith in God!
My shelter comes from knowing my present limitations.
My shelter comes from envisioning my true possibilities.
My shelter is my protection.
My shelter allows me to store and organize.
My shelter gives me privacy.
My shelter is my space to own and be alone.
My shelter is a gathering place.
My shelter is shelter for friends when they need it.

Faith is a system of beliefs and understanding
Faith is trusting in whatever life can bring.
Humility is deference to the true sensibilities of others.
Humility is adherence to the truth of our experience as our experience.
Envisioning sets a direction and a sense of purpose.
Envisioning implies action and collaboration
Protection is recourse to the tools of self defense.
Protection is a plastic screen.
Keeping is a locked door and an iron safe.
Keeping is a library full of books and music.
Privacy is turning off the phone and closing the door.
Privacy is being invisible in the world.
Ownership is a picket fence with a no-trespassing sign.
Ownership is freedom to create your space as you want it.
Gathering is sharing a bottle of wine at the end of the day.
Gathering is like-minded people working for change.
Our shelter is God’s gift to us.
Our shelter is our gift to God.

July 16: Leaving It Up To God

Seth 2:  Leaving It Up To God

I feel so sad to see  you go.
I don’t know what to do or say.
It hurts to see you so alone.
It hurts to leave you in so much pain.

You say you must be a wanderer,
And it’s an empty life you didn’t choose.
You say you’re an incompetent ponderer,
And abandoned your whole life through.

If it was up to me, I’d let you out
Of all the sorrows of your past.
With perfect love, I’d dispel your doubt,
But I cannot answer what you haven’t asked.

So come again another  time
If the road you’re traveling makes you bored.
For I would like to meet your mind.
If the spirit’s willing, it’s an open door!

July 17: The Intuitive and the Revolutionary

The Intuitive and the Revolutionary

The guardian is inclined to go within

Through practices designed to enhance intuition;

Awakening her sensitivities

Through the forms of divination:

Gaining focus through meditation,

Following the patterns and the currents of feeling;

With an instinct to be empathetic;

Reflecting, in amazement on inner meaning.

She is Surrounded by people who are out in the world:

People primed for a revolution;

People out on a religious mission,

A scientist searching for a new solution.

An athlete; a businessman doing his best,

And  drawn to her quietude.

Knowing that they could not share in her quest,

As she could not hold their attitude

Of holding some standard which they have to win.

It’s an uneasy collaboration,

And it’s a necessary balance;

A complementary attraction

Stemming from people’s adherence

to divergent ways.

May 7: God As Personal Power

God As Personal Power

I look for God in everything,

Though sometimes I know it’s a stretch.

I reach for God when I pray or sing;

When I think of myself as a wretch.

I see God in everyday coincidence:

Messages that come through divination

But there’s no guarantee that an incidence

Is more than an indication.

Chorus:

In varying degrees, I know that God is here,

Whether I succeed or I fail.

Reflecting on things that I hold most dear,

I seek where God blazes a trail!

I see God when my plans succeed,

And all of my wishes seem to fall into place,

But when luck turns against me and my heart is in need,

It’s a less recognizable face.

I see God when my heart’s open wide

To any changes that come my way:

God who’s within and God outside,

But when the heart grows weak, does God go away?

Chorus

I look for God though spiritual actions

Like yoga, meditation, and dance;

I see God where I feel my strongest attractions:

Like camping in the mountains, or wild romance!

I see God in the crash of a n earthquake or storm,

Awakening fear, togetherness, and awe.

I see God is moving beyond every norm,

Yet guiding us all with Its Law!

Chorus

In varying degrees, I know that God is here,

Whether I succeed or I fail.

Reflecting on things that I hold most dear,

I seek where God blazes a trail!

May 6: Self Assessment

Self-Assessment

I don’t really have any major complaint,

Though I do feel out of phase.

I can see that the house needs a coat of paint,

And I guess I’ll get to it – one of these days.

No, I’m not even close to my Spirit’s perfection.

I hope I am headed in that direction.

I’ve decided what’s required, and it isn’t that hard.

There’s trouble abroad, which I can disregard,

And flaws in myself that I don’t have to see

While I take my adventures or make up my lists.

I’m not sure how I’m doing, but I believe I am free,

Though somehow, there’s something I’ve missed;

Every day brings another diversion,

And it’s hard to accept that it’s all in my hands.

It must be the time to take an excursion

From this world so full of demands.

Something inside that still needs to heal,

While the treadmill goes faster and faster,

That disconnects me from what I feel,

As though moved by the rapids of impending disaster!

Have I let myself get out of condition?

Am I too obsessed and with too many goals?

Am I trapped in the demands of social competition?

Was I supposed to have chosen a different role?

I live in the fear I might somehow be “gotten”

We all have the wisdom, but it’s all too soon forgotten.

I hope all I need is to get re-adjusted,

And I don’t want to admit I might really be busted.

Every day brings another distraction.

It's hard to accept that it's out of my hands.

I guess it wouldn't hurt to take a little action

In this world so full of demands!