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

PINK ROSES

15 June 2024

A birthday dedication to our Dear Carol

PINK ROSES 

Pink roses to the Lady of England:

Her royal blood runs not in her veins, 

But in her heart for fortitude and strength. 

Her loving kindness and caring ways 

Is her landmark for humanity.

Her loyalty is uncompromising and non-neglible -

Too huge to overlook.

Pink roses for a Mother, whose 

Unwavering and unbending soul -

To the call of service for those whom 

She loves; without bias, without prejudice. 

A Mother who made her presence known

Anywhere, anytime wherever you are:

"I'm here, if you need me Dear".

Pink roses to a dear Friend, who

For years has been my anchor. 

In friendship, she upholds me -

More than her flesh and blood;

More than a sister and a mother to my children. 

A Friend whom she never met

Until the day we'd finally embraced. 

All your goodness are not forgotten 

They may not have been expressed 

With eloquence, but, in the depth of my heart 

You will stay the person you are,

The Carol we knew through fate 

Whom God has blessed us through the 

 years.

©️ Leah C Dancel 

15 June 2024

All rights reserved 

Orange NSW 

AUSTRALIA 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CAROL

Many happy returns of the day!

Love, hugs and kisses

Leah, Lily and Noemi

ALONE IN THE COLD

15 June 2023

He stands tall beside his own shadow.

Lost in thought, feeling wrought.

This world is full of vagaries

Where justice is only served to those who gained favour by strong connection.

A morsel denied to this poor little guy

As food for the gods are offered to the heathens

But then he refused to take what's not his

He waited alone in the cold, this winter day.

©Leah C Dancel

Copyright ©️ 15 June 2023

All rights reserved 

SH-AUSTRALIA

YOUR TIME, NOT THEIRS

IN MEMORY OF STEVE LYMAN, UK

A fellow Poet at ILA, one of the most respected Admin Staff.
 

Lifted from the post of Annette Nasser 

14 June 2024

This passage Steve posted on his timeline, I believe shortly before he passed away.

**

"YOUR TIME, NOT THEIRS"

By Steve Lyman

Rain has finally stopped - I don't mean the weather - I'm talking about the showers of life - those dark cloudy days - The ones that drag you down - stopping you from moving on with everyday things - It's about time - You may hear me say - Well, in my opinion, this is how it feels - how it seems to motivate - but also cause us to deflate - There is so much that we go through in life - A time for this - A time for that - Good things - Bad things - Happy or sad things - all connected with time - So what happens if you take time out of the equation - Does it help improve your situation - Will it help you heal quickly - They say it will get better in time - Do they mean their time - or your time - You can never tell how long your time actually is - Putting a time on those dark times - when every minute feels like an hour - everyday seems to last forever - is that their time too - Somehow I think not - So, let's take today for ourselves - Let's use our time - Use the time of today in a constructive manner - make those minutes count - Do something that lifts your spirit - you know, with the power of positive thinking - You will be a lot nearer to their time - but you must own it - Take it for yourself - so, in your own time - you will actually heal - at your own pace - in your own mind space - that's taking time out of the equation.

REFLECTIONS

By Paul Guerin

This is a new poem just drafted, called "Reflections". 

Reflections

 

I’m on a narrow winding way

I search but cannot see the end

So I reflect upon my day

And matters that I need to mend

I struggle down the narrow way

Recalling old forgotten dreams

Wishing for a brand-new day

When reality is all it seems

My mind runs over hills and dales

I think of times long past

Some happy days and some sad tales

Romantic dreams that couldn’t last

My mind drifts on to valleys green

With tall dark mountains looking down

White beauty of a winter scene

That lifts my thoughts so I won’t drown

I wonder where this road will end

Is the destination getting near

Does solace wait around the bend

Will there be hope and quiet here

As the narrow road winds on along 

I vacillate from hope to fear

If past mistakes have made me strong

Perhaps I can walk out of here.

THE WORLD AT LARGE

13 June 2024

THE WORLD AT LARGE

Inching t'wards the real thing. 

Call it winter chill or winter freeze;

Freon thickens on the ground. 

There's fire by day and night

Chunky woods by the fireside

For slow combustion overnight.

Warm home, warm heart

Where love and peace reside 

Winter stills the world at large.

©️ Leah C Dancel 

13 June 2024

All rights reserved 

Orange 🍊 NSW 

AUSTRALIA

IN THE POET'S MIND

11 June 2024

Post by permission from the author, name Gav Smith of Victoria.

 Created in the poets mind,

a mel-o-dy inspired he,

what was about that stirred him most?,

a way to think, deliciously, 

that took away the usual aim,

creating prose or verse recite,

it really chose to bother him,

what put he down, did surely write.

I do not like all music, no

with some it seems to come from hell, 

to cause the brain to vegetate, 

and from a lofty height it fell,

but some, dear God, angelic be,

I presuppose a wondrous sign,

so musical and voices praise,

and with my brain it does align.

In colours too, what can be done?,

a painting that shall lead the way,

so etched upon your mem-o-ry ,

The water, flowers, they say Monet,

you look and gaze, so much aroused,

you learn to say most truthfully, 

this simpleton, a man called gav, 

a wondrous sight is shown to he.

I long to learn to think like this, 

I do not mind, so differently,

and draw from all that one may see,

but try to cope, how shall that be?,

and place my books, of poetry, 

a thrill indeed,  so marvellously,

and future means to dwell indeed, 

Of writings pure, may this succeed.

Copyright ©️ Gav Smith 

Founder of SOUPEE'S

Victoria AUSTRALIA 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

I came across a FACEBOOK Page called THE SOUPEES. 

BEFORE THE COFFEE GETS COLD

07 June 2024

by Toshikazu Kawaguchi

Don't leave anything for later.

Later, the coffee gets cold.

Later, you lose interest.

Later, the day turns into night.

Later, people grow up.

Later, people grow old.

Later, life goes by.

Later, you regret not doing something...

When you had the chance. 

Life is a fleeting dance, a delicate balance of moments that unfold before us, never to return in quite the same way again.

Regret is a bitter pill to swallow, a weight that bears down upon the soul with the burden of missed chances and unspoken words.

So, let us not leave anything for later. Let us seize the moments as they come, with hearts open and arms outstretched to embrace the possibilities that lie before us. For in the end, it is not the things we did that we regret, but the things we left undone, the words left unspoken, the dreams left unfulfilled.

   — Before the Coffee Gets Cold is a 2015 novel by Toshikazu Kawaguchi

Source: English Literature info