#20: Ocean's End Part One

Will you come with me my friend,

On this journey to the ocean's end?

Look out as far as the eye can see,

That is the place where you could be.

I have a crew, ready to sail,

A one-way journey, of massive scale.

I have a special ship you see,

With sails that angle horizontally.

For when the ocean begins to fall,

I do not plan to kill us all.

Instead our sails will help us glide,

No longer water, the airs our ride.

I have no clue to what comes next,

There is no guide or map or text.

When we reach these foreign lands,

We may find new tribes and clans.

They could either help or kill,

But that's the fun, that's the thrill.

Who knows what adventure we'll find,

When you join this crew of mine.

#19 Despair in the Dawn (Treblinka Death Camp)

Oh to the discoveries of horror

Of monsters we wish we could ignore

The stench will eternally linger

The wound will remain an open sore

The road was black with ashes

Our victory trumpets would sound

But more was lost in the moment

When none of the prisoners were found

The machinations in this prison

Were filled with plenty of clues

The haze in the sky was repulsive

As we realized the unbearable truth

Only their dust and their memories

Would echo along in the wind

We have no comprehension of their potential

Of who they could have been

I can only imagine how horrific it must have been at the death camps in Germany. This poem is about the discovery of the death camp at Treblinka by the Soviets. The Nazis had already retreated by the time the soldiers arrived. I wonder how long it took for the Soviet soldiers to realize that this place was an extermination site. 

Prior to their retreat, the Nazis destroyed any documents and attempted to hide any evidence of Treblinka being a death camp. But the evidence, is overwhelming. The last mile of the road leading to Treblinka was pitch black from cremated ashes and remnants of teeth and bones were found in the surrounding soil. To come across this prison but to see no prisoners, and then to discover that all the prisoners were executed, I can't even begin to comprehend the emotions the Soviet liberators were feeling.

#18: Does my parrot really love me?

Does my parrot really love me?

I’d really like to know

I've taught him how to say the words

But he doesn't have that glow

I've taught him only nice words

Like happy, love, and joy

And he always is polite

To every girl and boy

I feed him on a schedule

And a diet that is swell

But I cannot shake this feeling

That he is not doing well

You see he cannot tell me

The words he needs to say

Like when he is sick or gloomy

Or hurt, depressed, or gray

From the cover of Eugenia Leigh's Blood, Sparrows and Sparrows

Do your friends know how you are really doing? Or are you only telling them how you wish you felt.

Is your true self caged and trapped? Or is it able to roam free. Is the image you project true of who you are? Or are you only projecting a false image

#17: A Mother's Love

My mom is the best. Seriously. Here she is flying effortlessly over Chicago. Sorry Air Jordan, but this is some superman level flying.

Below is my first prose. It was fun to write, and the words came pretty naturally. I might start writing in this style more often.

This particular piece is of a story that my mom has told me many time but I have no recollection of it. Thanks mom for all the ways in which you show your love. Happy Mothers Day

I stood there

Innocent

Barely three years old.

You knew

I knew

But I wanted

To get away with it.

I lied to you.

Not with words

With my eyes

But the evidence

Was there.

The stool

So I could reach

The stove.

The cupcakes

Turned to muffins.

My mouth

Sugary sweet and guilty.

You sent me

To my room.

I raged

And raged

And raged.

I stomped off to my room.

I laid on the floor.

Except...

I stuck my feet

Out the doorway.

An act of rebellion.

Stupid rebellion.

What did you see

In me in that moment?

A sinner?

A stupid child?

Surely I was both.

Yet you loved me

All the more

#16: Descended

A few weeks ago, I was having a really bad week at work. Thankfully, it was the first and so far only terrible week. I enjoy going to work and have a lot of fun managing my team. This crappy week though, I was barely functioning. In fact, towards the end of the week, one of my coworkers asked if I had gotten drunk the night before. I hadn't had a sip of alcohol, but apparently, I looked hungover. 

My team though, they picked me up that week and made sure everything that needed to get done got done. I was probably working at half speed/capacity, but everyone else picked up the slack. The beautiful thing about this was I didn't ask them to work harder. They recognized the type of week I was having and they stepped up their games. 

To me, my team demonstrated a tangible humility that brought me closer to God. Crazy thing is, this isn't a job in the religious sector. My team is made up of a group of people with diverse beliefs and backgrounds but their decision to help me through my terrible week was a true act of selflessness. 

God speaks in so many ways, but I find his most powerful messages come in my lowest moments. This moment at work spoke to me in how God operates. His modus operandi begins with selflessness and I was privileged to see it demonstrated in the workplace.

This week, I want to share a passage from the Bible that shows God's value and desire for humility and selflessness, Philippians 2:1-6 

Below that is a poem I wrote back in 2007 called Descended which is inspired by Philippians 2.

Is there any encouragement from belonging to Christ? Any comfort from his love? Any fellowship together in the Spirit? Are your hearts tender and compassionate? 2 Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one mind and purpose.

3 Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. 4 Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.

5 You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.

6 Though he was God,
he did not think of equality with God
as something to cling to.
7 Instead, he gave up his divine privileges;
he took the humble position of a slave
and was born as a human being.
When he appeared in human form,
8 he humbled himself in obedience to God
and died a criminal’s death on a cross.

You descended from the heavenly realms to bring an eternal light

You lowered yourself to that of mine to save the sinners plight

Amid the darkness of evil men you came with truth to tell

You walked among the dirty streets and did the Father's will

Your life was full of compassion, and a fierceness to proclaim

You gave your love for all to see, for that we’ll never be the same.

Bible Excerpt copied from the below website

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Philippians+2&version=NLT