Balance

Mar13

It’s  all about balance
This often illusive state
Balance between caring for others
And self care
Balance between work and play

Life has been teaching me how to creat
And maintain this balance
And my balance is different from yours
You may need six hours of sleep to be well rested
I may need eight or nine
You may be able to work full time and
Maintain a healthy family life
I may not

To create balance I need to know myself
Know my strengths and limitations
Life is not a one-size fits all
I have to respect my size

And it’s not a matter of good or bad
Productive or not
Successful or not
It’s about how I feel in my skin
How I like to live my life
Not comparing myself with others
My life is good when I feel fine

I keep learning each day
But I’ll try really hard
To remember what I’ve already learned
Sometimes, it takes a few times to get something
Sometimes I’ll make the same mistake again and again
But I’ve learned to be patient with myself
Some lessons take longer to master
And that’s all right
March 13th, 2016

Disconnected

Mar11

Depression is a disconnection
Disconnection from the world
One’s passions
One’s friends
One’s agile mind

It’s a forced disconnection
Someone just suddenly pulled the plug

I grope in the dark to find the cord
But alas it’s too dark

I keep trying
I get frustrated
I keep searching
No result
It’s like a nightmare
Out of my control
My only hope, to wake up!
March 10th, 2016

 

For more poems on depression and healing please

refer to my book:  Feeling Fortunate but Awful

Mothering

Mar11

A mother’s work is not glamorous
No need to dress up for work
No chit chat at the water cooler
No breakfast meetings or lunches out

A mother’s work is repetitive
What was washed before needs to be washed again
The same advice needs to be repeated
The same routine, each day

One never really gets a promotion
Even though the challenges always change
One is not materially compensated
Even though one works day after day

Sick days don’t exist
Holidays are more busy sometimes
The same errands and
The same activities day in day out
Can test one’s patience after a while

The work of the mother as educator
Is invaluable of course
Nurturing, loving, encouraging, consoling and more
But often that’s taken for granted
That’s after all what mothers should do

The creativity that goes into problem solving
On this job, is overlooked
Mothers are doing what mothers must do

A mother’s contribution to society
Is often not appreciated
Especially if she doesn’t work outside the home

But let’s consider what the world would be like
If mothers did not do what mothers do…
March 10th, 2016

We all come from Africa

Mar10

Seeing oneness instead of otherness
Seeing kindness, joy and creativity
Instead of the colour of someone’s skin

Seeing the invisible part of us
Instead of the clothes our spirit wears

Otherness is created by us
It doesn’t have a basis in reality
We all come from Africa
No matter how we appear now

Otherness has divided us for too long
It’s time to take steps toward oneness
It’s time to look at someone’s qualities
Rather than their country of birth

It’s time to see with our inner eye
We all come from Africa
March 10th, 2016

Spring cleaning

Mar8

imageThe season of Spring cleaning has arrived
But to be honest, I don’t do much extra cleaning
Around the house at this time

I was thinking about spring cleaning my heart though
Washing the dross off my soul
And adorning it with beautiful virtues:

Kindness, gentleness, patience
Exuberance, enthusiasm and joy!

Seeing the good in everyone
Having a sin-covering eye

Speaking with kindness and love
Avoiding  being critical

Holding the hand of one who hurts
Trying to cheer them up

This kind of Spring cleaning makes sense to me
I should actually do it all year around
March 8th, 2016

The beautiful continent

Feb15

So what do you do when you have been dreaming
Of something for years and years
And suddenly the dream becomes a reality
Without you planning it?

I’m talking about my trip to Africa
A dream that has been with me for a long time
Like a loyal friend

My great great grandmother hails from this land
Her story an intriguing one
She was brought to Iran to work
At the home of the Master of the house
But Became his second wife

She was beautiful, I hear
But we don’t know which country she was from
Her story is shrouded in mystery
Mysterious like the continent she is from

So, it’s to her land of birth that I go
With hope and expectation
To the land of wonderful people with
Radiant smiles
To the land of music, dance and drums!

February 15th, 2016

Over fifty

Jan31

Being over fifty can be so cool
First of all, you’ve passed forty and
The world did not fall apart

Then, your children are older
And you have more time

You don’t have the anxiety of trying to figure out your life
You have accumulated some wisdom

Now that I’m over fifty I know
It’s OK to laugh out loud in a crowd
I know what I like and what I don’t like

I don’t worry as much about what other people think
I feel free to write my heart out

I’ve lived, fallen, got up and smiled
I have things to write about

I’ve discovered my passion and finally know
What I want to be when I grow up

I’ve made it through the sleepless nights
When my children were young
Now, I can go to bed before they do
And that’s alright

A wrinkle here, a wrinkle there
But who cares
Why should we be afraid of wrinkles and age spots
I think we should wear them like badges of honor and
Be proud of them like battle scars

So, all is well, all is right
I’m over fifty and even now
The world has not fallen apart
If anything I know better who I am
And what my strengths are
January 31st, 2016

Modern times

Jan30

In some places men can marry four wives
And keep a few more, on the side
I was thinking to myself
Why not give women the same right?

After all, times have really changed
Women are educated and breadwinners
One wife and four husbands can be as viable economically
As one husband and four wives

Why this change you may ask?
I say, why not?
What’s the difference between us
What makes one condition possible
And the other not?
We are living in modern times!

Now, to tell you the truth
I’m just making a point
I think one husband is more than enough
Find a good one and you’re set for life

 

I also think that men should now cover their hair
Now-a-days men’s hair can be so stylish
With new fashionable cuts, colour and highlights
I think it’s time for men to cover their hair
To keep women’s eyes off of them

And what’s all these tight pants and shirts men wear
Where is the modesty, I dare say
Flowing clothes are much better
Otherwise a coat they should wear

Now, all of this is only in good fun
But really what makes men different from us
Why the double standard and different rules
I don’t get it, l’m confused

Modern times need modern rules
We need to ask men to cover their hair
Or let women uncover them!

January 29th, 2016

Daughters

Jan30

 

Fathers and daughters have a special bond
I always felt close to my dad
And even now when his physical presence is no longer here
I still count on his support and love

I ask him for help and he responds
I know he’s aware of what’s going on
Sometimes he comes to my dreams and acts as a guide
I know that I’m still in his heart

My daughters and Albert have the same relationship
What draws them to each other, I don’t know
But there was a time when Nat would ask something
And before the sentence was done
Albert would say yes
I had asked the same thing an hour earlier
But the answer was not the same!

Albert would spend hours going over
Homework with Nat, after a long day at the office

Somehow Albert could not say no to her
Nat’s batting eyelashes did their job each time
She had her dad wrapped around her fingers
And I couldn’t figure out what her magic was

There’s something that draws on the
Heartstrings of a dad
When a request comes from his daughter
It’s as if he’s mesmerized
Mind and reason play no part!

It’s a special relationship
It’s a strong bond
One I’m happy to have experienced with my dad
Moms have the same relationship with their sons
So they need not worry and feel left out
January 30th, 2016

Africa!

Jan27

My dream trip is three weeks away
Time to get excited?
I think so!

Zambia, here I come!
To see your beautiful people
Bask in your sunshine

Here I come!
To hear your beautiful accents
And local languages
Even the names of people makes me smile

Here I come!
To see the radiant smile
On people’s faces
To see them dance
To absorb it all and store it
In a safe place in my heart

And best of all
I’ll share this experience with my daughter
What a blessing
What joy

Here I come, Africa!

 

January 27th, 2016