Tag Archives: air

GONE TO THE GODS

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Death comes sneaking up like a cat
But I escape it by leaping into the air, twirling three times –
I play better than any death-cat.

Some days, I hope Death forgets to come –
But then I remember that Death never forgets –
Death always licks its plate clean.

Since I’ve recently been granted a new grandson in the world –
Will Death now consent to “punch my ticket” –
Scheduling me for a fast ride into oblivion.

As I approach closer to Death
I’m open to accepting its help in loosening my ties to the world –
Shedding old habits like flowers flung back into fields
Or bright coins – thrown out for strangers to be surprised by.

The last things to go will be my beloved books –
Every room in my house wears them with emotional warmth
But, one day, those shelves will all be emptied
And no one will know I ever lived here.

I hope I’m long gone before Death arrives
Who’ll be quite surprised at missing me –
Death thought I would be a tasty snack
But its teeth hit only air –
Because I’ve gone ahead to the gods –
And my own pregnant invisibility.

IT COSTS TOO MUCH TO BUY WHAT CAN ONLY BE EARNED

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It’s more generous than sunshine,
More unstoppable than a runaway coal truck,
And more important than a room full of Presidents.

What is it?
Love, of course, the instant it touches a human heart –
Who or what could stop it?

Every human being has experienced this.

So what’s recently been restricting it to a trickle –
Why isn’t it still fire hose strong –
Rushing and gushing into the world with all the force of a springtime flood?

Perhaps, we take love for granted –
Like air –
Believing it’ll always be there because it’s so essential.

But that would be a mistake –
Because real love is not free –
It has to be worked for.

Since it’s so wonderful, we believe it should be a gift,
So when it’s not –
Futilely, we attempt to buy, and sometimes, even steal it –

This is why a life without love
Often turns out to be so painfully expensive.