and I held the sun in my hand

There's something about watching the sun rise from the back of a horse.

There's something about eating the day, with all it's fire and force.

There's something about the feeling, when you hold the sun in your hand.

And something about love that I don't understand.

The Snow-Woman's Tale

There once was a snow-woman who was really quite small

Around the size of an over-stuffed doll

She hadn't a friend to call her own

And she lived in a spot where the sun rarely shown She began to wonder if anyone cared

No one came by to see how she fared

But this all changed one fine cloudy day

When she saw a kind man coming her way

He knelt before her in the cold, white snow

Why he was there she didn't quite know

But then she saw them, the weeds in his hand

They were brown and old and not at all grand

---

But her heart nearly melted, which would have been bad

For she would have dissolved into something sad
So she merely smiled and took them from him
And her little cold heart was full to the brim.

So next time you see someone without a friend
Just remember our story and the happy end
For a weed or a smile or just a "hello"
Can warm even those made from cold snow.

Midnight
So still, so dark
Blanketing earth with silent reverence
I rest in the solitude
Find strength in the calm
Words become unnecessary
Making room for thought
A sound breaks the silence
It is my breathing.

The Hardest Part

The hardest part
Is laid in gold
Surrounded by
Joy untold
A hedge of thorns
Guards the gem
Like every rose
Has its stem
Rainbows form
Only after rain
Love is laughter
Love is pain
Hurt and healing
Go hand in hand
Those who once fall
The stronger stand
Behind every cloud
Is a silver lining
Just like the fire
Does the refining
A friend's arrow
Cuts deep the heart
Loving them back
Is the hardest part.

233 Years

Two hundred and thirty-three years
Our country has been alive,
Whether it be depression, civil war
Or terrorist attacks, we somehow survive,
The United States has been blessed
With abundance and plenty
Million of people have come
To experience the land of opportunity,
But let us not forget the ones
Who gave their lives to freedom's cause,
Most now lay in unmarked graves
Dying without honor or applause,
Let us not forget the freedoms
They paid for with sincerity,
Their blood paved the way for us
To live in peace and prosperity,
And let us not forget our God
The one who got us to this place,
We aren't here because of our strength
But only by His sovereign grace.

Praying in the Dark

I don't know what's going on
In your life right now
I barely know your name,
All I know is that
I can't forget about you
You're stuck inside my brain,
There's a pit in my stomach
That won't go away
It keeps me up at night,
I want to tell you
How much God loves you
And He can make it right,
I want to let you know
That I've been praying
Every day for you,
That you would see Jesus
For who He really is
And discern what is true,
No matter where you're at,
No matter what you've done
His arms are open wide,
He can chase away the dark
Heal your very soul
And bring you peace inside,
But how can I tell you
All of these things
When you seem so far away?
An imaginary chasm
Stands between you and me
And all I can do is pray.

A Poem About Nothing

I need to write something
What I don't know
Something small
But I know it will grow
The words aren't coming
I'm a little rusty
But I've paper and pen
And they've proved to be trusty
A creative infusion
Would be quite nice
To write something happy
Or filled with vice
An emotion of some sort
Makes a good start
But mine are all muddled
And won't play the part
So I'll write about nothing
For nothing will do
To write a meaningless poem
That is none the less true.

A Sonnet

The day is done and all the world asleep
When darkness ventures out to rule the night,
He watches over all who mourn and weep,
He hides their tears and keeps them out of sight.
Blackness serves as the home in which he keeps,
Shadows are the doorways to where he lurks,
Over all the earth he crawls and he creeps,
Bringing respite to man and honest works.
Yet even though he reigns he is not free;
His time is nearing and he cannot rest,
His rule is short and at dawn he must flee
Away from light and into the far West.
The sun dispels the night and brings the day
And chases gloom and darkness far away.

Masterpiece

Perfection shatters
Into broken glass
There is nothing left
Of the masquerade
In the broken pieces
I see my reflection
The truth is harsh
And cuts like a blade
Who I thought I was
Was only a facade
The picture was painted
And hid every flaw
What I see now
Is dirty and ragged
The image is me
Not the dream that I saw
Tears stream down
My filthy cheeks
I cannot bear to see
What I have become
I turn my face
To hide my shame
But there is no place
That I can run
A hand reaches out
And touches my shoulder
I turn to see Him
Who I have ignored
His eyes see past
My faded beauty
They look deep in my soul
And pierce like a sword
I try to run
But He holds me still
Then He says something
I shall never forget
"I've always loved you
And I always will
I gave you life
And that I'll never regret
You are a masterpiece
A work of art
Others have bound you
But now you are free
Free of the mask
You once hid behind
You are ugly to them
But beautiful to Me."

Unpolished

A prayer unpolished
Rugged and deep
Is cried out loud
She feels so weak,
Words seem futile
There's more to say
She cannot stop now
She has a part to play,
Are the mountains moving?
Is the sky clearing?
She can only wonder
Yet the time is nearing,
Beyond the divide
In the invisible world
The angels stand ready
With wings unfurled,
Swords are drawn
They are ready to fight
They can feel her prayers
And time is right,
The signal sounds
And the battle is begun
The demons for their prince
And the angels for the Son.

A Haiku

Coldest of Winter
Huddled around the warm fire
Waiting for Summer

*****

(This isn't what I'm feeling like at all, I just had to write a haiku for school. Bring on the snow!)

Under the Sky

Today I looked
Up at the sky
And felt quite small
No bigger than a fly,
I breathed fresh air
While lying in snow
And watched
The world go by.
A layer of clouds
Covered the sun
But I knew
That it was there,
I had the sky above
The world before me
And I didn't have a care.
For the moment
All was right
And I was content
Just to be,
The sky was so big
I was so small
But somehow
I felt free.
Life may be harsh
Cold, and hard
The world may not be
What it should,
But as I lay
Out under the sky
Right then
Life was good.

Cut Short

You will never know me
My life has been cut short
I will never feel the wind
Or build a tree-house fort
I could have been a gymnast
But my legs will never walk
I could have been an artist
But I'll never draw with chalk
I could have been a doctor
But I'd need both my hands
I could have been surfer
But I'll never feel the sand
I could have been a teacher
But I'll never hold a book
I could have studied the stars
But my eyes will never look
I could have been a singer
But I'd need my voice for that
I could have been a vet
But I'll never stroke a cat
I could have been a chef
But food I'll never eat
I could have been a runner
But I'd need the use of feet
I'll never know what it was
That I was supposed to give
You will never know me
For this life I'll never live.

Sentimental Days

Distant memories
Passing, fleeting
Fading into
Gray and blue,
Buried feelings
Rise again
There is nothing
I can do.
Helpless now
They surround me
Captivating
Heart and soul,
I close my eyes
And drift away
I am losing
All control.
Then reality
Harsh and cold
Pulls me back
To now,
Past makes room
For the present
It takes
A final bow.
As much as I try
A cannot hold on
Those days
Are one of a kind,
I cannot go back
I can only relive
Those memories
In my mind.

A Look Back

The end of the year has come
Time passes by so fast
Have I made a difference?
A difference that will last?
What have I accomplished?
Besides material gain?
Did I draw nearer to my God?
In sunshine and in rain?
Did I walk in the spirit?
And die unto myself?
Did I read my Bible daily?
Or leave it on the shelf?
Did I trust God fully?
Or did I fret and fear?
Did I listen to His voice?
Or did I plug my ear?
Looking back I can see
Where I rose and fell
The picture isn't glamorous
But only God can tell
Thank You for Your forgiveness
And what You've saved me from
Help me to love You more
In the year to come.

I don't think this is written very well, but thought I'd post it anyway. Tomorrow is a brand new year! I clean slate! Thank God that we can start afresh.

Come and Gone

Empty stockings on the wall
Abandoned trees, short and tall
Needles sprinkled on the floor
No more wreath on the door.

No more lights on the rail
No more surprises in the mail
Candles are snuffed out
Secrets are no longer about.

The nativity scene is no more
No tags saying "to" or "for"
The 'Christmas Song' has ceased
I am glad for that at least.

Ornaments are packed away
Family is now home to stay
Listen: there is no more song
For Christmas has come and gone.

Written January 2005

A Journey

I am on a road
I try to peer ahead
I cannot see very far
But I remember what You said.

You said, "Follow Me."
But didn't say to where
Sometimes it makes me wonder
If we're almost there.

You said it wouldn't be easy
But it would be worth it in the end
Others might leave me
But you would be my friend.

I wish that I could see
Where this road will go
You just smile and say
That I don't need to know.

It makes me think that maybe
The point is not the end
But the journey itself
Every hill, and every bend.

Life in Death

I cannot tell you how many times I have started this post. Too many. Needless to say I have given up and am instead going to post a poem I wrote that says everything I was going to say anyway. Maybe not in so many words, but you'll get my point. My brain is fried from staring at this computer monitor longer than any human should without accomplishing anything. So without further ado, my poem...

In a casket
Clothed in black
Weeping tears
Cannot call back
The silent form
That lies so still
For death itself
You cannot kill.

Immortal beings
That we are
Find ourselves
Not so far
From the door
Of life and death
When we shall draw
Our final breath.

But is there hope
To be found
After we
Are in the ground
Is there life
After the grave
Is there one
Able to save?

I will not fear
The grave so cold
I will not fear
Growing old
For I know
That Jesus waits
For me at
The pearly gates.

The Road that Leads to Nowhere

My feet plod down this dusty road
The road that has no end,
For miles and miles it stretches on
And here my life I’ll spend.

What I seek I do not know
Perhaps I seek nothing at all,
Only to see the trail in front of me
And to follow its beckoning call.

What’s around the next corner?
What is around the bend?
Only the road that leads to nowhere
The road that has no end.

(I wrote this last year for school)

Only Because...

It isn't because I am perfect,
It isn't that I have no sin,
It's only because the light of Christ
Has cleansed me out and in.

It isn't because I have arrived
To some perfection of mankind,
It's only because of this promise:
"If you seek then you shall find."

It isn't because of my works
That Jesus has accepted me,
It's only because of His love
That He has set me free.

It isn't because I have finished
The race He's set me to run,
It's only because through His grace
That He has already won.

It isn't because He needs me
To carry out His plan,
It's only because of who He is,
And that makes me who I am.