An honest worship song

I cannot sing the hymns of old
with true and honest heart
the words I sing and how I feel
are paths that oft’ depart
I like to sing of rivers faced
that all’s well with my soul
“but is it well?” I have to ask
“not always” truth be told
and as for anchors holding strong
upon life’s troubled sea
it’s hard, sometimes, to trust in things
that can’t be seen by me
I must confess that I am one
whose faith is far too small
for when I’m told by God to trust
I still fear that I’ll fall
I cannot say “Lord I believe”
when doubts are still so strong
So Lord, please take my disbelief
and turn it into song:
A song of slowly growing faith
of walking with my King
Lord turn my doubting into praise
and give me faith to sing!
Yes turn my doubting into praise
and give me faith to sing!

Napowrimo 2018 – day 8

MORIA

The tunnel twists and turns about
And stretches ever on
How long until I see the end
And see the light of dawn?

Too long I’ve wandered in the dark
I’ve tripped too oft to name
Each turn I think ‘the end is near’
But ev’ry turn’s the same

At every juncture in the path
I must choose left or right
But cannot know if what I chose
Will lead to dark or light

I need a guide to take my hand
To guide me through this maze
So I might once again behold
The sunlight’s glorious blaze

I’m lost in here and near despair
I’m weary heart and bone
I need a guide to take my hand
Too long I’ve been alone

I need a guide to take my hand
To guide me back to home.

~~

For napowrimo.net. off prompt yet again.

Dear Future Me

Dear future me:

I understand that I’m to blame
for who you have become
that choices that I make today
contribute to the sum
of what and who I’ll someday be
a person good or bad
and so I’m sorry if my choices
somehow make you sad
but please don’t be too frustrated
it’s not my fault, you see
for who I am is all the fault
of that fool past tense me.

~~

A letter poem for NaPoWriMo

The Tale of Karla Kidd

Karla Kidd the Kangaroo
liked coffee mixed with cream
and if she missed her morning fix
oh how you’d hear her scream

Ken and Keith, the Koala twins
said, “Karla’s such a creep”
’cause every time we go to bed
she shrieks us from our sleep!”

The kookaburra in her tree
and other critters too
were all annoyed with Karla’s shrieks
and said, “what shall we do?”

A Cobra King from India
who’d come to visit kin
said, I can help you out my friends:
one bite will end this din!”

The moral of my crazy tale
is “don’t annoy your friend”
for screaming ’cause you’ve missed your fix
might cause your life to end.

~~

really, the moral is: check your fridge and pantry – and if you’re running low on coffee and/or cream, be sure to go buy some!

~~

written for NaPoWriMo – the prompt today is to use alliteration and/or assonance

The Tale of Knight’s Search for Treasure

The sun arose on Sunday morn
the first day of the week
and on this day a knight set out
a treasure for to seek

The sun arose on Monday morn
and this tale finds our knight
in battle with a scaly beast
a long and glorious fight

The sun arose on Tuesday morn
and by an ocean shore
our Good Sir Knight keeps on his search
what things might he explore?

The sun arose on Wednesday morn
no treasures yet were found
but our Sir Knight does not give up
he knows that they’re around

The sun arose on Thursday morn
our knight is searching caves
but finds that they are empty ones
and quite as still as graves

The sun arose on Friday morn
The Knight will not give up
Perhaps today’s the day he’ll find
a jewel crusted cup

The sun arose on Saturday
and cross the sky it crept
but our poor knight was tuckered out
and on he slept and slept

~~

At NaPoWriMo.net, for day Eight we are encouraged to write a poem utilizing repetition.

No Room

along a dusty road they trod,
a woman, donkey, man
they longed to rest their weary bones
when they reached Bethlehem

the man on foot held on the rope
to lead the laden beast
he hoped that soon, they could sit down
to sup upon a feast

the donkey plodded steady on
in hopes that soon the day
would come to end and he could rest
upon a bit of hay

the woman, on the donkey’s back
was gasping, for she knew
that they would barely reach the inn
before her babe was due

and when they fin’ly reached the place
where they would spend the night,
the trio, man, and woman, beast
were shown a dismal sight:

the inn was full, no room to spare
no matter how they plead
for not one guest was willing now
to give up of their bed

the keeper of the inn looked at
the couple, weary, worn
and said, “I have not room for you
except, there is the barn…”

and Joseph said they’d try next door
but Mary said, “we’ll stay,”
and then to Joseph said the words
“The baby’s on the way”

and so it came to pass, that night
that in a barn of sod
the King of all the world was born
the precious Son of God

Lumpkin’s Day

[Sketch title: Lumpkin in the Tall Grass.  Artwork by PMu.  Image used with the gracious permission of the artist.  Please visit her site at https://pmuink.wordpress.com/ and click on “doodles” to see her absolutely fantastic sketches!]

~~

Lumpkin scratches whines and begs
while sitting by the door
there’s flowers, trees and bugs outside
oh so much to explore!

and when he fin’ly gets his wish
he races to and fro
with so much world for him to see
where should that poor pup go?

he chases dragonflies and then
digs for a bit in mud
and then he romps and wrestles
with another puppy bud

too soon the sun bids day adieu
the pup heads back indoor
there’s still so much to see and do
tomorrow there’ll be more!

and soon he’ll need to go to bed
another time of joy
for though he may not get to run
he’ll snuggle with his boy…
…but only after a bath, of course!

~~

A note about the artwork:  I recently discovered the website https://pmuink.wordpress.com/, and I was blown away by the artist’s unique style of sketching.  All of her sketches/doodles are beautifully done, but this puppy really made me happy…primarily because I have a 6 year old son who is absolutely in LOVE with dogs…and this sketch shows a dog who clearly loves to get in a bit of mischief…much like my son!

The artist asked that if I make any money from this poem, that I make a donation to The Clock Tower Sanctuary from the proceeds.  As this blog is public, and I have as yet to make any money from any of my poems, I would like to invite you, my readers, to make donations directly.  You can find them on the internet here.  The Clock Tower Sanctuary is a UK based organization that helps homeless youth.

~~

NaBloPoMo Day 16

How many roads?

I’ve walked along my share of roads
I’d count ’em, but no longer can
and even though all of those miles have passed
I still don’t know if I’m a man

Some days when I look at the good that I’ve done
I feel that the answer is “yes”
but then all my vices and sins rear their heads
and then I’m a boy, still, I guess

There’s sand in my eyes and there’s dirt in my teeth
from the storm blowing in from the east
but no answers are found in the wind, oh my friend
no answers are found in the least

so how many roads must I still walk upon
before I am truly a man?
I s’pose til I’ve walked til the ‘boy’s’ left behind
but I don’t really know if I can

~~

Bob Dylan has mumbled his way to a Nobel Prize for Literature. I can’t really say that I’ve every been a Dylan fan, but he certainly was a prolific songwriter/poet. Because of his Nobel prize, we are writing poetry at dVerse that is inspired by, or is reaction against Mr. Dylan.

Trains Roll By

The following is written for dVerse, where we were asked to write poems that are “singable”.  I followed Bjorn’s lead and went with a ballad.  This story is in no way autobiographical.  It is fiction from engine to caboose.

~~

I was born in the town where dreams come to die
and “hope” meant the rails heading out
and the gang that I hung with, we were all so sure
we’d escape, we had no doubt

When we were just a gang of boys
we’d watch the trains roll by
and talk ’bout how when we grew up
we’d bid this town goodbye

Bill Williamson was the first to leave
when he finally lost all hope
the boxcar he left in had all the doors closed
to hide the marks of the rope

When we were just a gang of boys
we’d watch the trains roll by
and talk ’bout how when we grew up
we’d bid this town goodbye

Before too much longer Jeff Jacobs went too
departed this town without charm
but the only tracks that led him out
were the ones found in his arm

When we were just a gang of boys
we’d watch the trains roll by
and talk ’bout how when we grew up
we’d bid this town goodbye

Yes one then the next one left this town for good
a few actually fled with their life
I heard though that Arthur (my best bud of all)
is in jail now for beating his wife

When we were just a gang of boys
we’d watch the trains roll by
and talk ’bout how when we grew up
we’d bid this town goodbye

Somehow though I find that I’ve been left behind
in this small town where dreams come to die
I guess, though, I’ve ended up better than most
but I find myself wondering why?

I never left this little town
I’ve bid the gang goodbye
I think about my boyhood friends
as I watch those trains roll by

I think about my boyhood friends
as I watch those trains roll by

I think about my boyhood friends
as a tear rolls from my eye

Jacqueline

I knew a girl named Jacqueline
she was the love of my life
and I was certain that one day
Jackie would be my wife.
Every day was wonderful
we did each thing together
as if we were connected with
with some sort of unseen tether
but then one day she moved away
in secret did her partin’
such are the trials of the heart
when you’re in kindergarten.

~~

sharing this with NaPoWriMo.