He was born among the shadows
On a quiet winters morn
In a city of people
Unaware and unalarmed
Never realizing
A miracle was born.
The city of David
Completely unaware
That in the silence of the moonlight
A great miracle happened here.
Only shepherds were alerted
By angel messengers on high
As the virgin to her newborn
Sang a lullaby.
Animals were listening
The forgotten people were around
But the rest of the people,  sleeping
In this obscure little town.
Miracles unfold silently
As most people impatiently wait
Often they are hidden
Behind greed and hate.
Today we wait in silence
Some given up altogether
How on earth can someone
Come along and make it better?
Often times that someone
Is living in your skin
The solution to a problem
Lying deep within.
Nobody is a hero
Containing their own light
But guided like the shepherds
On the holy night
Following the star
Shining ever bright.

Light

The reason for the season is light
Some small some powerful in might
The oil of provision for days
Heavens mysterious ways
The star that shown far away
Giving earth the promised display
A journey,  as dark as it seemed
Was revelation of heavenly dreams
Subtle,  impoverished, alone
Who could imagine Him holding a throne
Once angels beheld him in awe
Now only a family,  in the straw
The world rejected the sign
It didn't match up with divine
Insignificant not bright enough
Only it was a different shade of love.
Light in the dark has a name
Sometimes its a flickering flame
Heads turn at a holy fire
But sometimes subtle is higher
Its hard to believe a story
When its not regaled in glory
Who will come to behold
A promise more priceless than gold?
Hurried are we, unaware
Of the loss that heaven has beared.
Til the invisible light reaches hearts
Doubt and distraction will part
Souls will rest in the light
Of the miracle that took place that night.
Merry Christmas

The deconstruction

So much letting go
Leaves fall
Swirling like a turban
Subject to the wind
The wayward master.
No direction only certain
One day one moment will be yours
To let go
Surrender to the inevitable
The world won't hold on
To you
You are a leaf,  only an appendage
To the Tree of Life
The world doesn't notice
As you surrender your light
Its too busy holding its own
The world is amazing
At leaving you alone.
Shattered is your source of life
So you float and flutter
Grasping at nothing
Every gust of wind
Is always something
The atmosphere is the canvas
For the new beginning
Change really hurts
It doesn't feel like winning.
You sway with the gusts
Pondering trust
Life leaps and you
Have no choice but to leap too
So you do
Its intense and you bleed
Yet you plant your own seeds
Buried for the season
Its dark but theres a reason
When the gusts settle down
On the cold solid ground
Dawns only light
Brings warmth your way
You're small and buried
A little bit scared
But understand it
Today is your day.

Why do butterflies fly away?

A child asked an elder
Why do butterflies fly away
I tried to pick one up
But it would not stay
The child's elder answered
Butterflies are not like you
All of their short lives
Butterflies are pursued
Animals chase butterflies
Thats why they have to hide
Having the unfortunate decision
Involving fight or flight
Some butterflies are brightly colored
Displaying danger in their skin
Others camouflage
So the predator does not win
Butterflies are prey
Most of nature wants them dead
But this is not your fate
The child's elder said
Children are protected
Or that is the plan
You will never have to run
Or hide from evil hands
We always will protect you
Unlike creatures in the wild
And that my love will be
Our prayer for every child.

Fanning the atmosphere
White trunked and full of glory
Star shaped apendages
Tell of natures story
Seed pods like a fluff ball
Footprints like a giant
Extending branches as if
Shes welcoming new clients
If you want silence
Come and speak to me
If you want an audience
Converse with a tree

Celestial decoration
Stamp sized, and ornate
He lives for the attention
Yet his jobs to pollinate
Sipping floral sweetness
Drinking up or eyes
Fluttering like madness
Waking sleepy skies.

Some fall stuff...Dickinson style

The leaves went on a tumble
Sideways off the trees
Some with a mighty wind gust
Some with a gentle breeze.
A symphony of gales
As grey skies paint the dawn
Autumn debuts this evening
Yet the robin continues her song

Its ok to label
If the label is right
If they're unaware
They won't put up a fight.
Everyone has a label
Everyone except for me
Bullying is innocent fun
Its not a big deal
Boys will be boys
And girls will be mean
Just play along
And don't make a scene
We don't want fanatics
Here at this school
We all want harmony
So just play it cool.

I would do that
Except I have a concern
Words are like fire
And all fire burns
Words are stains
That never come out
In case you all wonder
What Im talking about
Fast forward this day
Ten years down the line
Take a look at the future
Tell me if its " fine"
Because boys will be boys
And girls will be mean
And their victims will live
Their lives as a teen
Over and over
Like reruns in their heads
Fat, ugly,  retarded
Better off dead
Do you understand
That words are tattoos
And labels are able
To terrorize you
Call me a fanatic
Call me extreme
Boys will be boys
And girls will be mean
And silly old words
Don't mean a thing
Like silly statistics
Of young adult suicide
And those goofy older things
Called the rest of their lives
The next time you smile
Or roll your eyes
Understand the power
Of powerful lies
The affect that they have
On real life lives
Fear and depression
Anger and pain
Rewind in their psyche
Again and again
Nightmares and daydreams
Failed relations
In some extreme cases
Retaliation
Do you think school shootings
Are a tragedy?
Get the wax out of your ears
And listen to me
Pay attention to your students
Offer counseling
Because boys aren't just boys
And girls aren't just mean
Abuse and bullying
Are a REAL thing
You can't change the past
But heres what you can do
Advocate for those people
They're counting on you.

I have news for you.  It doesn't matter.  It doesn't matter what you do or don't do what you're good at or not good at.  You are exactly who you are supposed to be.  You have nothing to prove.  You never did. The world isn't looking at you.  The only reason people look at other people is because they do something that demands attention.  So unless you do something really amazing or horrible nobody is watching
So the choices you make every day are between you and your conscious.  So hold onto wisdom like a security blanket and listen to it.  Make good choices
 But do it for you.  Not the audience you think you have.  You're not Beyoncé you don't have a public 😂 you are just a regular extraordinary person with regular extraordinary value and extraordinary talent. Do you and do you well. Just don't expect applause. Expect something much greater.

Only you

I never imagined
Saying goodbye
Never imagined anything other than us
One love
Written in the sky
Our brokenness bound together
By a promise to not let go
There was only you
I held onto
In the storms
My dancing partner in the downpour
I rehearsed what I would say
The day we met but why
Did I not rehearse
How to say goodbye?
My love for you is selfish
So much in it for me
Our love together is reckless
Fulfillment of a fantasy.
Our love together is real
It makes me want to cry
When I think about the future
How I have to say goodbye.
I've said see you later
I've said clean up this mess
I've asked your opinion
Over the purchase of a dress.
Made so many promises
Some that I've kept to
I cannot promise that I'll be able
To say goodbye to you.
This is not our fairy tale
Everything feels wrong
I am so damn tired
Of pretending to be strong.
When I say that I'm ok
Understand that its a lie
Im sorry for saying nothing
But Im afraid to say goodbye
Sorry I've been so distant
So sorry I've been away
I've run off like a coward
When I really want to stay.
I want to hold your hand
And cry into your arms
I thought that i could lose you
One moment at a time
That watching you slip away
Would be completely fine.
Because it is practical
And what I had to do
But I am too deep in love
To say goodbye to you.
I will take your hand
Cry into your shirt
Let love cover me like nightfall
No matter how it hurts
I can say goodbye to anything
That this life asks me to
But I know that with my final breath
I'll hold onto only you.

Poetry
Twist your soul
Into a different shape
Like licorice rope
The words play ping pong with your emotions
Heart flutters in a moment
Of poignancy
My poems are a glimpse of me
A kaleidoscope image
A moment in time
A literary shrine
Homage to to depth that words create
Each syllable has something to say
An illustration of my world today
Everyone has their own illustrations
Twisted like laces
By their imagination.

Gallop

Riveting
White
Through the night
Beckoning light
Twist and twirl
Mud splattered canvas
Chaotic windstorm
Far from harvest
Sycamore remnant
Perturbs the darkness
Acrobatic motion
Interrupting stillness
Strewn shells scatter
Only storms matter
When the announcement
Of their presence
Becomes the atmospheric essence.

A funeral for winter
A farewell to the frost
A eulogy for torrent
A dismissal of the dross

Invitation for the blooming
Announcement for the rain
A transition to resurrection
As life returns again

A goodbye to the darkness
Left behind,  the monotony
Of daily brazen coldness
Solar inability

For in the blessed springtime
The sun is more than just a pawn
She perseveres amoung the season
Her presence lingers on.

Put a band aid on it


Sometimes that phrase has bad connotations
But one day a little girl without hesitation
Had a box of band aids
And skipped around the room
Mending with her 1st aid
Much impending doom
Bubbie was sad and missing zaide
The girl climbed into the lap of the lady
Chose a pink band aid with purple stars
Put it over bubbe's heart
She skipped through the house
Her baby brother had tears
A blue and yellow band aid
Soothed his fears
Along with a hug
And a sweet little song
Sister first aid can't go wrong.
Unaware of the impact she'd made
With a box of band aids
She searched each day
High and low
For a broken place
For her band aids to go.
Ima in the kitchen looked impatient
The girl made another band aid donation
Putting a green and orange band aid
On imas hand
Which made her day
Take a box
Along with you
You may find a reason to
Love someone
Who needs some healing
Your band aid may change
The way they are feeling.

*
Bubbe-yiddish for grandma
Zaide- yiddish for grandpa
Ima- Hebrew for mother

Broken butterfly

Tattered wings
Memories of finer things
Years go by
Minds are mended
Important happenings have ended
New endeavors ressurected
Wings wear out but never die
Renewing courage to fly
Gossimer feathers
Overlap together
Strength in numbers never wavers
Courage visits sooner or later
Broken butterflies still fly
Ascending to sweeter skies
On the way severing ties
With broken promises and lies
A broken butterfly is wise
Softly sweetly
Still she sings
Very careful with her wings