TO RISE ABOVE A COMMON GROUND

17 November 2024

A plea from a brother, a father, a grandfather... for the sake of peace who hasbeen deprived from being close to his own immediate family especially his growing grandchildren.

To one who seeks harm, and wishes us gone,

May love and light, awaken your heart's tone.

Why choose destruction, over compassion's way?

Can't we address mistakes, in a brighter day?

My son's young family, with dreams so bright,

Two little girls, shining with innocence light.

What drives your anger, your heart's dark night?

Can't we forgive, and walk in love's pure light?

Confront us, let's heal, with open hearts,

Embracing morals, decency, and love's sweet starts.

Fear God's wisdom, and choose a higher path,

Let kindness guide us, through life's turbulent math.

May your heart soften, and love prevail,

Let's break the chains, of hatred's heavy gale.

Let's rise above, and find common ground,

In peace, forgiveness, and love's profound.

SEEKING THAT PLACE

Late upload

Written a year ago today 

11 November 2024

I am seeking that place 

Where I can see the breeze; 

Fanned by the southerly wind,

Where the sun intimately feels my skin 

That mimics my cheeky grin.

A place that can sense my inner joy,

Secretly lurking beneath my Soul 

Bereft with conflict the world is known 

But happiness the day  exudes 

Upon my countenance it shall prevail.

There I will catch my breathe 

While basking in the beauty of the sunset.

©️Leah C Dancel 

Copyright ©️ 11 November 2023

All rights reserved 

NB

Written while in transit (train) to Cronulla, a spontaneous decision hoping to watch the sunset there but to no avail. It's my first time and apart from the sunset, I wasn't disappointed.  There's a next time to revisit the place again. 

Photo: 

This castle crown photo was captured as we passed through Regent Street at Redfern on our way home with my family.

HEROES REMASTERED

11 November 2024

On REMEMBRANCE DAY 

Yes, I miss my poetry... 

but my muse is still asleep.  

The seeds of inspiration lay dormant 

Not for long I hope and pray. 

My stubborn ilk lingers on

Finding that oasis somewhere 

Looking for healing of a drying fluid obscured by vagrancy 

of knots and crosses I can't win.

Yet...

Let me pause my quill aside 

Let me whisper a silent sigh 

Today, I remember the heroes 

Dead in blood for courage sake.

There in kachana Mediterranean Coast 

Their souls were laid to rest 

a hundred years and six years more!

©️ Leah C Dancel

All rights reserved 

11 November 2024

SH NSW AUSTRALIA

RAPUNZEL'S LOCKS

10 November 2024

Late upload 

Rapunzel's locks

Tresses in brunette 

Long to comb and braid

A climbing rope against the wall

Of  a secluded castle in sylvan's lair 

Forgotten by legends

Till a handsome Prince came  

To rescue his maiden fair 

From the wretched fairy

And took her to his kingdom. 

To be his queen forever more.

 ©️ Lola Inday 

11 November 2023

Ala mode

THE ARROW AND THE SONG

18 October 2024

PASSIONATE SHEPHERD TO HIS LOVE

Lifted from Eng. Lit.

18 October 2024

Come live with me and be my love,

And we will all the pleasures prove,

That Valleys, groves, hills, and fields,

Woods, or steepy mountain yields.

And we will sit upon the Rocks,

Seeing the Shepherds feed their flocks,

By shallow Rivers to whose falls

Melodious birds sing Madrigals.

And I will make thee beds of Roses

And a thousand fragrant posies,

A cap of flowers, and a kirtle

Embroidered all with leaves of Myrtle;

A gown made of the finest wool

Which from our pretty Lambs we pull;

Fair lined slippers for the cold,

With buckles of the purest gold;

A belt of straw and Ivy buds,

With Coral clasps and Amber studs:

And if these pleasures may thee move,

Come live with me, and be my love.

The Shepherds’ Swains shall dance and sing

For thy delight each May-morning:

If these delights thy mind may move,

Then live with me, and be my love.

By Christopher Marlowe, 

The Passionate Shepherd to His Love

SUNSHINE

08 October 2024

SILENT HOUR

Lifted from English Literature Info

“I love the silent hour of night,

For blissful dreams may then arise,

Revealing to my charmed sight

What may not bless my waking eyes.”

Anne Brontë - Best Poems of the Brontë Sisters.

Anna Billing

AUTUMN AURA

Quote:

“I loved autumn, the one season of the year that God seemed to have put there just for the beauty of it.” ~Lee Maynard

AUTUMN AURA

Midday draped the heart of silver crisps

Beckons far from the horizon 

I draw a joy of radiances in the fluffy clouds 

Seasoned happiness transcends 

When I illuminate a canvas of jubilant expression 

I embrace a dream of amber hues 

Meticulously, it grows to the Northern Sky

A flurry of zephyrs arrives with Autumn aura 

Traversing through a century of kisses 

That’s when a ripple reverberates on my body 

Riding over the moment 

With an abundance of joys

(C) Hum Ale 

PC: Google

"Enriched by a vocabulary, a flurry of descriptive autumn beauty that buoys the imagination of both the writer and the readers' spirit, this certainly is a place to go to." ~Admin. 

WHERE THE MIND IS WITHOUT FEAR

Posted at FB a year ago today

23 September 2023

Where the Mind is Without Fear

@Rabindranath Tagore 

Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high;

Where knowledge is free;

Where the world has not been broken up into fragments by narrow domestic walls;

Where words come out from the depth of truth;

Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection:

Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way into the dreary desert sand of dead habit;

Where the mind is lead forward by thee into ever-widening thought and action–

Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake.

Photo by Rado Gatchalian at Macquarie University,  Sydney visiting Rabindranath Tagore place of Silence.

MICRO POEM: PEACE

By Leah C Dancel 

MICRO POEM 

Homefulness imbued peace

Serenity in place 

Alone and nonchalant 

Of vagaries at large.

Home defines me

Love and gratitude exist.

©️ Leah C Dancel 

23 September 2024

#ILA

EMPTY

By Estelle Cortes

Today would have been your 93rd mortal birthday Tatay Medes. The last strong grip of your hand before you closed your eyes forever. You are one with the Force now. Hasta pronto Papa. Te echo de menos. 💔. Here's a poem I wrote for you which is now a part of my published poems. I regret that you did not get to read my book. You who loved books so much. I wish.... If only....

(My father passed away 3 years ago. Today I am honouring him for what would have been his 93rd bday)

Empty

I have to wrap my mind around

The emptiness between us now.

Empty chairs, empty bed

In an empty house

Near an empty river bed.

Empty spaces in between

Empty words.

Empty laughters devoid of joy,

Empty eyes that once 

Housed a brilliant mind.

Then like a ray of sunshine,

In your world of gloom,

A moment of lucidity,

Perhaps a precursor of doom?

A smile of understanding,

A worried frown

A lingering concern

For one you love so much.

How fragile the mind is,

How often hope is lost, 

How often does the bell toll,

And for whom?

~Estelle~

October 16, 2019

LET THE TREES TEACH YOU

14 September 2024

TOMORROW

Lifted from Bring Side Page

Today I woke and found myself

With less than yesterday

My life was missing things

I had assumed were here to stay

Things that had seemed little

‘Til they left a giant space,

Left an empty silence

And a longing in their place

And I began to understand

That when push came to shove

I longed for what I’d had

When I’d thought that was not enough

I’d always looked ahead

Was always chasing more and more

Growing so complacent

Of the things I once wished for

Running to tomorrow,

To the weekend, to next year

Forgetting I was lucky

For the things already here

And all this made me realise

That my life can’t buy more time

So maybe I should spend my time

Loving this life of mine

And maybe I’ll be grateful

For the little things I’ve got

That seem inconsequential

But which mean an awful lot

So, tonight I’ll thank the stars

Instead of asking them for more

And I will hope to wake with all

The things I’ve thanked them for

‘Cause now I see that my todays

Are filled with time I’ve borrowed

And I shouldn’t sit around and waste them

Chasing my tomorrows

****

Credit Goes To : Becky Hemsley 2023

Gorgeous artwork by Kristina von Wiesen Art

THE SANCTITY OF LIFE

By Don Luman-ag

THE SANCTITY OF LIFE

By Don Luman-ag

Though life is not perfect

It is in itself beautiful 

Even with all its flaws

It is nonetheless wonderful

There is beauty and wonder 

In both the great and the small

Life is sacred by nature

Even after man's fall

The proverbial Breath of Life

Money can't recreate

The rights of every being

Must be treated with respect

Each will answer to The Maker

On the day of reckoning 

All your loots and hoards

To the other side you cannot bring

©️ Don Luman-ag

All rights reserved.

September 9, 2024

Samal Island, Philippines

#heavenonearth 

#thirdcollection

I AM THE SCULPTURE

05 September 2024

Author: Jeffrey Cejero

Doble kuatro ngayong singko

I Am the Sculpture

by Jepoy

Carrrying a heavy load

As if the Earth is on my back,

Never shall I drop my knees

And bow to adversity.

I will make every struggle an opportunity

To build a better future.

I will make every pain,

A catalyst to improve myself.

Just like a workout in the gym,

The more I defeat my weakness

And surpass my previous record,

The more I improve myself.

On this double four as my age,

I've realized I'm the sculpture of my life.

I can carve my dreams and future

Into tangible existence of truth and reality.

THE PRAYERS OF THE INFIDELS

By Rado Gatchalian

13 August 2024

THE PRAYER OF THE INFIDELS

By Rado Gatchalian

13 August 2024

Here I am praying, at my own free choice, so that the people will know that I do not follow blindly. Hear me for my cause, not that I will be saved, but for me to be free. Free from fear, free from ignorance. 

I call upon all the masters, past and present, for them to graciously bless me with strength that I need, for me to endure all the challenges in life; wisdom, so that I will know the difference between right and wrong; and beauty, so that I will be able to enjoy this gift of life.

I pray that I may not only see the light but to be able to endure its duty to pass on the torch to deserving seekers of truth and humble servants of humanity. Allow me, my Dearest One, The Source, to shine beautifully both in my heart and my outer body. But as I shine like the morning sunrise, may I always remember to remain gentle and humble like the sunset. Then, to remain vigilant, curious, and passionate as I need to start life again in the next morning.

I beseech all my brothers to witness this moment of gratitude as I celebrate this opportunity to serve mankind.

I shall never turn blind eye to all wrongdoings. To promise to always give aid to those who are in need. To surrender to the will of the Order and to submit to a Grand Purpose, higher than all earthly religions and sects. 

But here I am now, a humble servant, silently waiting to listen to the Voice, so deep, flourishing, and powerful. I am waiting. Help me to know how to listen well.

And I pray that I remain vigilant against tyrannical noise and poisonous whispers of false prophets and masters who claim they hold the Truth. 

I pray that I will be given a power, so powerful, that I can be an instrument of peace and a messenger of love and knowledge. 

I pray that in my weakness, I find strength; in my greatness, I find humility; in my agony, I find joy; in my darkness, I find light; and in my ignorance, I find the truth.

Enlighten me, my Gracious One. And in the hour of my death, may I rest in peace and forever be with you - in total surrender to your will, to your compassion.

Amen.

BOOK

JULY 22, 2024

When you are old and grey and full of sleep,

And nodding by the fire, take down this book,

And slowly read, and dream of the soft look

Your eyes had once, and of their shadows deep;

How many loved your moments of glad grace,

And loved your beauty with love false or true,

But one man loved the pilgrim soul in you,

And loved the sorrows of your changing face;

And bending down beside the glowing bars,

Murmur, a little sadly, how Love fled

And paced upon the mountains overhead

And hid his face amid a crowd of stars.

William Butler Yeats

Interesting Comment 

"Yeats fell in love with Maud Gonne, considered to be one of the most beautiful women in all Ireland, and a revolutionary. He asked her to marry him but she chose instead to marry a fellow freedom fighter John MacBride who beat her and later was executed in the Easter Rebellion. He wrote this poem to her." ~Daniel Callaghan 

Source: Eng. Lit. Info 

WHERE'S THE SNOW?

July 18, 2024

A sullen day, 

Antarctic wind, 

Chilly and freezing 

Numb my moments.

Drizzling icy drops 

No sleets pelting 

Not a flake floating

Snow drifts somewhere. .

lcd 

18 July 2024

WEATHER: LEAH'S HAIKU

July 20, 2024

Orange 🍊 NSW 

WEATHER 

By Leah C Dancel 

Copyright ©️ July 20, 2024

All rights reserved. 

The sun came shining 

at temporary moment.

Freezing cold unquelled.

Leah's #Haiku1

July 20, 2024

Clouds take flight higher
Away from the ground of mist
Covering the sun.

Leah's #Haiku2

July 20, 2024

Tiny drops pelting
On a paddled rippling song
Reflection moving.

Leah's #Haiku3
July 20, 2024

A downcast shadow
Beneath the sky; endless woes
Drifting through the gloom.

Leah's #Haiku4
July 20, 2024

Tender limbs swinging

Unseen wind twinning with rain 

Green leaves sheltered shades.

Leah's #Haiku5

July 20, 2024

Beautiful, rousing;

Heart-warming and passionate 

Ardent flames of love. 

Leah's #Haiku6

July 20, 2024

HOME IN THE CLOUDS

HOME IN THE CLOUDS

By Don Luman-ag

A cozy home 

In ethereal mists

On a rolling grassland

Amidst lush greeneries

The scent of pine trees

Cool mountain breeze

Believe it or not

This place exists

Not far from here

There it awaits

A heavenly place

Of celestial peace

No hustle and bustle 

Of the city life

Away from stress

My haven of rest

©️ Don Luman-ag

All rights reserved.

July 13, 2024

Samal Island, Philippines

WHEN YOU SAY GOODBYE TO A PARENT

Lifted from MBF

4 July 2024

WHEN YOU SAY GOODBYE TO A PARENT

You are suddenly living in a whole new world.

You are no longer ‘the child’ and regardless of how long you have officially been ‘grown up’ for, you realise you actually never were until this moment. The shock of this adjustment will shake your very core.

When you have finally said goodbye to both your parents, assuming you were lucky enough to have had two. You are an orphan on this earth and that never, ever gets easier to take no matter how old and grey you are yourself and no matter how many children of your own you have.

You see, a part of your body is physically connected to the people that made it and also a part of your soul. When they no longer live, it is as if you are missing something practical that you need – like a finger or an arm. Because really, you are. You are missing your parent and that is something far more necessary than any limb.

And yet the connection is so strong it carries on somehow, no-one knows how exactly. But they are there. In some way, shape or form they are still guiding you if you listen closely enough. You can hear the words they would choose to say to you.

You can feel the warmth of their approval, their smile when a goal is achieved, their all-consuming love filling the air around you when a baby is born they haven’t met.

If you watch your children very closely you will see that they too have a connection with your parents long after they are gone. They will say things that resonate with you because it brings so many memories of the parent you are missing. They will carry on traits, thoughts and sometimes they will even see them in their dreams.

This is not something we can explain.

Love is a very mystical and wondrous entity.

It is far better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all and grief, grief is the price of that love. The deeper the love the stronger the grief.

When you say goodbye to a parent, do not forget to connect with that little girl who still lives inside you somewhere.

Take very good care of her, for she, she will be alone and scared.

When you say goodbye to your parents, you lose an identity, a place in the world. When the people who put you on this earth are no longer here, it changes everything.

Look after yourself the way they looked after you and listen out for them when you need it the most.

They never really leave.~

~Donna Ashworth

HEAVEN ON EARTH

By Don Luman-ag

HEAVEN ON EARTH

By Don Luman-ag 

I'm gonna live in the outbacks

Where I can sit back and relax

Watching the sea of clouds roll

As cool mists freshen my soul 

Coniferous forests -- all around

Negative ions in the air abound

Here, my self, I wanna be found

My spirit's free, no longer bound 

No more drama, just nature trip

Steamy shower, skinny-pool-dip

Lovely environs, sweet solitude

Living a blessed life of gratitude 

As I conjure up heaven on Earth

I am filled, with peace and mirth

I'm getting closer to my dreams

Much closer than you ever think 

©️ Don Luman-ag

All rights reserved.

July 3, 2024

Samal Island, Philippines 🇵🇭

FEAR

By Khalil Gibran

It is said that before entering the sea

a river trembles with fear.

She looks back at the path she has traveled,

from the peaks of the mountains,

the long winding road crossing forests and villages.

And in front of her,

she sees an ocean so vast,

that to enter

there seems nothing more than to disappear forever.

But there is no other way.

The river can not go back.

Nobody can go back.

To go back is impossible in existence.

The river needs to take the risk

of entering the ocean

because only then will fear disappear,

because that’s where the river will know

it’s not about disappearing into the ocean,

but of becoming the ocean.

~Khalil Gibran

THE ART OF LIVING

Lifted from English Literature Info

27 June 2024

We must be willing to get rid of

the life we've planned, so as to have

the life that is waiting for us.

The old skin has to be shed

before the new one can come.

If we fix on the old, we get stuck.

When we hang onto any form,

we are in danger of putrefaction.

Hell is life drying up.

The Hoarder,

the one in us that wants to keep,

to hold on, must be killed.

If we are hanging onto the form now,

we’re not going to have the form next.

You can’t make an omelet 

without breaking eggs.

Destruction before creation. 

~Joseph Campbell, Reflections on the Art of Living