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I've added a new entry to my book, "These Are My JOTtings, Part #2"  : "Remembered, Always." Today's poem revisits and adds to the poem I wrote Monday on Memorial Day. I didn't feel as though I got it all said for my entry into the
The first five verses are virtually the same with a few edits to aid rhythm. Family and friends of loved ones lost in the service (all branches) live with Memorial Day every day. Those of us who have buried loved ones in old age, who also served, feel grief so real on Memorial Day, too, because of what those days took out of them. I hope I'm saying this well because the words seem to escape me. Military service is a large sacrifice, whether the giver died on the battlefield or in old age. I don't want to diminish the day for the former, but neither do I want the latter to be forgotten. I want all to be remembered in the greatest honor. Thank you for your patience and understanding as I tried to write this. Blessings, All!     |
| I've added a new entry to my book, "These Are My JOTtings, Part #2" : "Mimosas Blush the Sky" Mimosa trees grow widely here in The South. I don't know how ubiquitous they are in the rest of the world, but they seem ubiquitous here. When my daughter was small, my wife showed her how she used to take mimosa tassels and brush them against her face, like she was putting on rouge. It became a wonderful pasttime when we played out in the back yard. Maybe it was something many families did. I'm glad we have that memory to reflect upon as Jade Amber Jewel  gets ready to take her next step into Life. Blessings, All! |
| I've added a new entry to my book, "These Are My JOTtings, Part #2" : "Blessed Memorial Day!" Today's poem was created from a heart for the day as well as with the intent to enter it in the contest,
When I wrote the last line, it sounded in my head like a quote from an ancient poem around the times of the two world wars, maybe earlier. However, though I could not find a direct quote, I put the line in quotation marks anyway. If there is a quote I can cite, please tell me what it is, so I can "give honor where honor is due" to paraphrase The Bible in Romans 13:7, KJV. Let this poem be a teary-eyed, hand-over-the-heart SALUTE to those who gave their all. Blessings, All! |
| I've added a new entry to my book, "These Are My JOTtings, Part #2" : "The Weeks Are Running Together" Isn't it amazing? As children, we get used to the Monday through Friday grind of school, followed by a weekend of play. This time of year was the favorite for us school children as we shouted on the last day of school something like, "School's Out! SUMMER!!!" However, as an adult, my work has gotten "flipped on its head," and I am aware that I am not alone. Now, Friday means "The workweek has begun." Our weekend is somewhere around midweek. I hope this poem provides a salute to all first responders, healthcare professionals, and retail employees, who are just now starting a week of work. Blessings, All! |
| I've added a new entry to my book, "These Are My JOTtings, Part #2" : "What Comes Next?" This first half of the year in 2025 has been a real challenge. I'm always reminded of Dad and Mom's passing in February and March each year. However, one of the dearest pets of my lifetime died last April of 2024. Now, there's a new month to grieve. Retirement planning in May of this year is reminding me that mortality is starting to catch up with me, too. Three weeks from tomorrow (which means June of this year), we're scheduled to take our daughter to the airport to fly away to her first adult job, that is not in our hometown. When I focus on all the temporary things of this life (all the changes I have to grieve or adjust to), I am quickly tempted to give in to depression. My life changes are not unique to me. We all have to deal with these changes because our first parents sinned in The Garden of Eden, meaning that humans grow and change. (Growing is good, but aging was caused by sin.) However, Sin's End Game was not left to us to figure out on our own. Because of the perfect life of Jesus Christ, and His Death, Burial, and Resurrection, the "What Comes Next?" for the regenerated (John 3:3) is Hope and Joy beyond comprehension. His Merits substituting for our demerits bring the life of "joy unspeakable, and full of glory." “Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory:” (I Peter 1:8, KJV) "1 Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. 2 In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. 4 And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know. 5 Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way? 6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." (John 14:1-6, KJV) Blessings, All! |
AmyJo-Boy is it getting hot! - You are most welcome. Thank you, Sister AmyJo. You are always the encourager. She will be blessed in the Lord's Hands, no doubt. Thank you for telling me about your dad. That's hopeful.  |
Reply| Jay O'Toole - Hang in there. Change is always tough even when it is good change. Thanks for printing these scriptures. The words are beautiful, no matter how many time you've heard them or read them. |
Reply| Pumpkin - Thank you, and amen. |
Reply| I've added a new entry to my book, "These Are My JOTtings, Part #2" : "Culinary Writing" Confession is good for the soul. Today's poem is mostly an exercise for me. Sometimes I like to try my hand at the marriage of two different concepts in the same space. This was a little difficult because I saw posters like this at roadside gift shops when I was on a trip with my family in my youth. The title was something like, "The Cakemix of Friendship." The text followed with line items, such as "Fold in a cup of happiness, gently include the sugar of kindness,..." That's as far as I can go with the syrupy sweetness, but I think you get the idea. I can't do that anymore, and I pray my poem has put the sweetness in reverse. There are elements of cooking and story writing that can make a connection between the two, but if I ever become the old cliché, I think I will run screaming from the room, hands flailing in the air. It's my exercise, but I hope there's something you can like. Blessings, All! |
| I've added a new entry to my book, "These Are My JOTtings, Part #2" : "Tumbleweed" Today's poem has been created in response to the weekly challenge by
The origin of the tumbleweed is interesting to me. I was a little boy seeing them blow around in my Oklahoma hometown, during my early elementary years. It's common name is the Russian thistle because it came here by mistake in some shipments of grain because its seeds were unnoticed among the flaxseed. It grows green in youth, but breaks away from its roots as an aging plant, spending the rest of its existence being blown about by every wind that comes along. Frankly, the tumbleweed seems like an excellent life lesson, which is my attempt in this poem. I hope you enjoy it. Blessings, All! |
| I've added a new entry to my book, "How to Be Saved" : "What Do I Know About Being Saved?" We are sinners because of Adam's eating of the fruit in the Garden of Eden, disobeying God's one command to Adam. We have bad blood, tainted with Original Sin. Jesus Christ Alone lived His Perfect Life, died His Perfect Death, was buried in a borrowed tomb, and rose of His Own Volition on the Third Day. The merits of Jesus Christ substitute for me in the payment of my sin, and in the perfection I could never attain. The task is large. The way is narrow. The Only Hope is in Jesus, The Only Christ. "15 For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. 16 So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy." (Romans 9:15-16, KJV) Blessings, All! |
| I've added a new entry to my book, "These Are My JOTtings, Part #2" : "The Importance of Rest" Life is changing almost exponentially right now. That's not just a reference to what's going on in the world. That's a reference to my life, personally. For nearly two decades, my identity was parent, teacher, and learning coach. Then, Jade Amber Jewel graduated from high school. I went back to work, and now it's time to retire and start Medicare, which means I need to go back to school to learn about that. Maybe after I get all the new things pegged down into the grooves of the LP, called The Rest of Life, I can set up an office at Two Story Books and Coffeehouse in town, focusing on my writing. This is just a moment in time. The best is yet to come. Thanks for the advice, AmyJo-Boy is it getting hot! . I know you're right. Let me contemplate the Importance of Rest, tonight, in a slow coffee cup. Blessings, All! |
Thank you for tagging your daughter  I've now fanned her and your wife to peruse their ports someday  |
| I've added a new entry to my book, "These Are My JOTtings, Part #2" : "Sevenling: "Of The Child"" Today's poem is a tool to help my heart in taking yet another step to process the childhood I experienced. Don't get me wrong. I did not have a terrible childhood, but I had a childhood experienced in some way by all. Sinful parents rearing a sinful son. All of us are sinful, due to Original Sin. All are in need of The Savior's regenerative power to restore fellowship with God, which was lost in The Garden of Eden. (John 3:3,16; John 6:37,44; Romans 10:9-10,13; Philippians 2:13) Poetry has been such a wonderful tool for me since the age of 13; these 52 years it has been a gift from God. One could say that poetry is for me the Sting of Bilbo and Frodo Baggins, which glows with its bluish, truest light in the presence of the Orcs of depression and sadness. Sting has helped me more than once to keep at bay these "manxome foes." (Thank you, Lewis Carroll, in "The Jabberwocky.") Daily, I run to the King James Version of The Bible to recall verses of Scripture that help me to daily fight the life and death spiritual battles that The Lord Alone can win in my life. He has given me poetry to express Scripture and life experiences in my own words. Writing my understanding of these wonderful words of Life helps me to embrace them more and more fully in my heart. God's Word is Supreme. The Jabberwocky and the Orcs of negative life experiences must be guarded against daily to live well each day for The Lord. Sting (my poetry) is a weapon to keep depression, sadness, and grief at bay. These villains will ultimately be defeated when The Lord Jesus returns to gather His Elect. "The elements of the Sevenling are: a heptastich, a poem in 7 lines made up of 2 tercets followed by a single line. metered at the discretion of the poet. unrhymed. composed with 3 complimentary images in the first tercet and 3 parallel images in the second tercet. The end line is a juxtaposed summary of the 2 parallels, a sort of "punchline"." (The quote is from Tinker  on the website, Poetry Magnum Opus. Blessings, All! |
| Marvelous Friend - Absolutely. I love my parents. We were broken vessels living in the same house. Great illustration, Sis. Forgiveness is not an option for the Christian. Well said. |
| Marvelous Friend - Maybe I could word that better. Forgiveness is the only option for a Christian. That's what I intended. |
| Jay O'Toole - I hear you. Holding onto unforgiveness hurts the one who refuses to let go of it though even if they aren't a Christian. The Bible does say that God won't forgive us if we don't forgive others. It's true. Sometimes it is easier said than done. God has had to help me let go at times. In the end, I don't want to hang onto unforgiveness. It doesn't do anyone any good and it certainly doesn't change the fact that whatever happened did indeed happen. |
I've added a new entry to my book, "These Are My JOTtings, Part #2" : "Transitions" We can talk about transitions, intellectually, when it happens to someone else. When it happens to us, it's emotional and personal. Baby girl has grown up. Daddy still has some growing up to do. What a gift I have to give to the world! Blessings, All! |
| I've added a new entry to my book, "These Are My JOTtings, Part #2" : "Joseph: "Just Being Me"" Tonight's poem is a summary statement in poem form, regarding the current Bible Study with Marvelous Friend and Sharmelle's Expressions  . Joseph and Daniel are the only two individuals who are documented in the Bible without any of their sins recounted herein. Joseph was one of Jacob's 12 sons. Joseph was just being himself. Joseph told his earlier dreams to his brothers and his parents. He got into trouble. Joseph was sold into slavery, becoming Potiphar's house servant. Potiphar's wife urged Joseph to commit adultery with her. Joseph refused, and the wife's slander landed Joseph in prison. Joseph told the butler's and baker's dreams, remaining in prison another two years. Finally, after about twelve years of family exile, Joseph showed Pharaoh the meaning of his dreams as The Lord gave Joseph insight. Then, Joseph was promoted to the second-highest ruler in the land, only behind the Pharaoh himself. Only the Lord can give this kind of Grace to take abuse, waiting for God, the Father, to restore one's name and reputation in His Time. After all, in The Scriptures Joseph is presented as a type of Jesus Christ, the Savior and Lord. Blessings, All! |
| I've added a new entry to my book, "These Are My JOTtings, Part #2" : "Some Coffee in the Afternoon Awaits" This poem is an attempt at a rondel. I've run out of time to check to make sure I got the details right. Gotta get ready for work ASAP. I'll let you guess the refrain, if the title doesn't tell it to you. The point is, Life is filled with time constraints pressed on us by our responsibilities. Coffee makes for a sweet little respite. Blessings, All! |
| I've added a new entry to my book, "These Are My JOTtings, Part #2" : "Getting Fast" When I was a youth, the seniors used to look at me and say something like, "Enjoy the days you're living right now. When you're an old man, like me (pointing to himself), time goes really fast." I'm starting to see what they meant back then, but I can't help but wonder, "Is Time actually running faster these days?" With all the road construction, building construction, and population growth. Do we have less time to do what we used to accomplish with more time? I surely am glad the Lord is still in control of this spinning top, we call "Earth." Blessings, All! |
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