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Jerusalem
This poem comes from Autumn Leaves:
She sits on a battle-scarred hill,
Standing quietly like a lone sentinel,
Waiting through clear, starlit nights
For history to turn yet another page.
Resting against an ancient olive tree,
From Gethsemane, I gaze across the valley.
She looks like a dull jewel
In desperate need of a good polishing.
War, tears, bloodshed and misery
Have been seen often by her.
She wears them like every day apparel.
Peace is not found within her walls.
Yet it’s written that a child was born
In a village known as Bethlehem
That’s just south of where I rest,
Just as the prophecy foretold.
Born in the bloodline of David,
Root and stem of Jesse,
Born to die, yet live again
And live forevermore. Amen!
His house was over there
Across the little valley.
All that’s left of it now
Is the Wailing Wall.
The mind boggles at the battles fought,
At the endless bloodshed,
The lives and dramas played out
And history that touches lives untold.
Here on this dry,
Barren landscape…
Where water and not gold
Molds the lives of the people.
The bride to be
Patiently awaits her groom
To dazzle the whole world
On her wedding day.
Timeless
This poem is in Autumn Leaves:
Peace be with you,
My thoughts unwind,
But…I knew you elsewhere,
From a distant time.
Though it seems but yesterday,
Still it’s been a long, long while,
Something hauntingly familiar,
My thoughts beguile.
Memories sometimes lapse,
But time cannot disguise,
I believe it was your smile,
Not your laughing eyes.
No words spoken here,
Nor lofty man-made towers.
Simple use of thought exchange —
No clock to chime the hours.
Corridors of time are hazy.
Dust covers her ancient fold.
Recollections thwart and tease
In this timeless mold.
Pardon my intrusion
Into your hallowed space.
Forgive my poor conclusion,
But…I never forgot your face.
Timeless memories the past can blur,
Yet never to erase
Our footprints o’er paths we walked,
Another time…another place.
Thoughts we shared, flowers touched,
As we made our way.
Soft words exchanged, feelings passed,
Fragrance lingering where we lay.
Enraptured by you still,
Forever I’ll repose.
Would you linger her a while,
My spiritual, timeless rose?
U.S.S. ARIZONA
After standing on the decks of the memorial for the U.S.S. Arizona,
I wrote this poem to honor our fallen comrades on the
50th Anniversary of that day, December 7, 1991.
It is included in my book, Autumn Leaves.
We came to pay you tribute,
O’er encrusted decks we stood.
And because you are deserving,
We rendered as we could.
Oil seeps up to surface light,
Rainbowed tears of those below,
Doomed forever to silence
Those many long years ago.
“Forget me not,” you whisper.
“Perish the thought,” say I.
“Though you sleep beneath the sea,
Your memory shall not die!”
“Remember Pearl! Remember Pearl!”
Soon became our national cry.
Our country rose in anger
On a vengeance trail to fly.
We shed our tears; we shed our blood.
War took an awesome toll.
Still we fought on to victory
While you topped our “Honor Roll.”
So rest in peace, fellow comrades,
The victory has been won.
We’ll not forget the price you paid
Seven December, Nineteen Forty-One.
Note: Oil still seeps out of the hull of the U.S.S. Arizona, creating rainbows on the water above it.
I Am
This poem comes from Autumn Leaves:
That which refreshes my soul.
That which renews my life.
That which gives life meaning.
That which gives purpose to existence.
That which gives center, balance,
Quietly directing our pathways.
That which our consciousness innately
Understands is right or wrong.
That which is beautiful from any angle,
In any light, from any distance.
That which cannot be changed, disfigured,
Or transformed into anything but beautiful.
That which is true to life forever.
That which lives in truth throughout eternity.
That which brings peaceful serenity
As it strips away falsehoods by knowledge.
That which makes the unique, alone,
Thrills us, yet challenges us onward.
That in us which cannot be denied
But accepted and exalted in reverence.
The I AM of the Universe, Father of Lights,
The Alpha and Omega, first and last,
Which lived, died, yet lives again forevermore.
That is what we recognize in ourselves! HIM!
Glorify His Name in all places, at all times
That your days may be long, your peace steady.
Praise Him in all things, for all blessings.
Place your feet upon the path and follow HIM!
Seek
This poem comes from Autumn Leaves:
Seek not for that which is not,
Nor ever was.
Follow not after lies
Or man-made cause.
Seek out truth and
“Peace be still.”
Let your heart and soul
Be filled.
Seek for that which was
And still is.
Love and Life —
Both are His.
More precious than the Rubaiyat
of Omar Khayyam.
Seek and find the one
And only true “I AM.”
Attitude
This poem comes from Autumn Leaves:
Almost anyone can do nothing.
It takes someone with vision to do something.
Cowboy’s Prayer
This comes from Autumn Leaves:
Now I lay me down to sleep
In open spaces
Lest I weep.
Saddle for a pillow,
Chaps for a spread,
Starlit canopy overhead.
And should I die
Before dawn’s break,
Thank you, Lord, for your fair shake.
Amen
wfosterwelborn 