Tag Archive | Poetry

Covid 2

Feb8

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Covid, covid, you’ve been with us for a year now

That’s a long time

That’s twelve months, 365 days, actually more

Are we used to you?

Somewhat

People can get used to the strangest of things

People can survive years in captivity

What we have with you is nothing like that

Yet we complain

We ask, where did our freedom go?

Where did our fun disappear to?

Why can’t we socialize like we used to?

We still have a lot of freedom though

We can zoom from morning till noon

iChat in the afternoon

Send messages on WhatsApp all day long 

We can socialize all we want

Yes, it’s different now

But just imagine what it would be like  

If we didn’t have the web?

February 1st, 2021

The garden

Jan23

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Where should I go for inspiration but to the Beloved?

Where should I turn my face to but to the beauty of the beloved?

Nowhere else is worthy is attention

Nowhere else will delight my heart

When there is a most perfect garden with dizzyingly fragrant flowers

A feast for the eyes and a balm for the soul

Why should I roam in the desert one minute longer?

The map has been drawn

The way has been shown

All that is left is to walk on the path 

That leads me to the Beloved

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My reading chair

Jan9

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My reading chair

In my reading corner

In my bedroom

Next to the window

Where the sun pours in, in the mornings

My reading chair

A simple Ikea chair 

With a footstool

Usually covered with books

Where I do a lot of reading and writing

My reading chair

My oasis

My place of calm

Where I inhale the fragrance

Of other people’s thoughts and feelings

My reading chair 

For the last twenty years

And for years to come

Hopefully 

January 9th, 2021

Reflections

Jan1

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I just realized I’ve been posting poems on this blog for ten years. How the time flies. I’m grateful to have discovered the gift of writing at this point in my life. It centres me, it nourishes me, it helps me process my thoughts and feelings, and I hope my writings bring joy to those who read them. It is important for all of us to identify what we are passionate about and peruse that and if that passion is in a creative field, even better. The arts are expressions of our souls and as such they will touch the souls of others. I wish you a wonderful year and I hope you will pursue your passion as well.

January 1st, 2021

Complain less

Dec27

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What do you do when you want to go out and there is nowhere to go?

The stores are closed

It’s cold outside

Can’t visit friends

Can’t write in a coffee shop

It feels a little like a prison to me

But it’s also far from a prison’s reality

I feel ashamed to complain

When others spent years in prison and did not complain

I’m complaining about a few days of lockdown

Although I’m still in touch with my friends around the world

Although I can leave the house if I want

Although I’m not being held against my will

So, in reality I have nothing to complain about

We are creatures that seek comfort and ease

We wish to have our way in things

Freedom to go where we want and do what we want is paramount

The emphasis is on me and I

We need to step back and look at the big picture

We need to think about what others need

We need to be of service to humanity

Comfort and ease will pass

What remains is the lessons we’ve learned

The service we’ve rendered

The souls we’ve touched

What remains after we leave this world

Is hopefully our vibrant spirit tried in the trials of life

And purified in the fire of adversity

These are the things I need to remind myself of again and again

Remember the example others have set

And at the very least, complain less

December 27th, 2020

*The prisoners referred to here are people who were in prison because of their Faith, members of the Baha’i community in Iran.

Success

Dec16

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Success is in achieving one’s goals

It’s not living our lives based on what is expected of us

Or what society dictates

The goals we set are meaningful to us

They are usually based on what our talents are

What’s important to us

What we’re passionate about

We don’t have similar goals

We are all different people with different aspirations

I set some goals for myself early in life

Some other goals evolved along the way

I’ve been working towards achieving them

My goals may be unconventional

Unusual and not the norm

But they are my goals

They bring me pleasure 

And give my life meaning

I’m learning to be content with my chosen path

December 16th, 2020

Dark clouds

Nov23

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The cold and damp winds of fall are blowing

I feel the cold in my bones

The dark clouds are shedding tears of sorrow

The exuberance of summer is gone

The world seems unfair sometimes

Goodness is not returned with good

Enmity seems to have the upper hand

As a pandemic ravages the world

I still believe in goodness

I think the good will be victorious

Sometimes it doesn’t look like that

But there is more to our lives than what we see

Goodness resides in the heart

It will be with us forever

Goodness perfumes the world

And cheers other people’s hearts

Injustice is like a cold dark night

But this dark night will eventually give way to dawn

Injustice can’t take goodness away

Injustice is due to the absence of love

November 23rd, 2020

Dedicated to the Baha’is of Iran

Eternal sunshine?

Nov11

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A year has passed

And my days are still sunny

How long will this sunshine of spirit last?

I’ve become accustomed to ups and downs

How will I react to constancy?

My mood has been a challenge most of my life

The possibility of a downturn each year, well and alive

But there is nothing to do but take it one day at a time

Be grateful for my blessings

Not take my health for granted

And do what I can to bring joy to the world

November 11th, 2020

Solitude

Oct25

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Sometimes a period of solitude is good

Unplugging

And instead of going to far off places

Going within

Sometimes a period of solitude is good

Listening to oneself think

Or just simply being

In my solitude I like to write

That’s how I keep myself company

My dialogue is an internal one

I speak intimately with my spirit

I pose questions

I present ideas

I mull things over

I analyze

Sometimes we need to listen to ourselves

Reflect a bit

Recharge

Solitude can be healing and energizing

But for me it should not last too long

October 24th, 2020