Dreams Laid to Rest

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Do dreams and visions become clearer with age?

Or does the dimming of the eyes blur them into forgetfulness

Do the young have vision or just a dreams and wishful thinking

Dreams that fade away with life’s circumstances and harsh reality

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Do dreams and visions become clearer with age?

Or does time and testing erase them from our view

knowing our dreams have turned into todaydreams

Realizing tomorrow is here and all we have left is today

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Do dreams and visions become clearer with age?

Or does pain and suffering challenge our faith and question our God

as we are overshadowed by dreams that are crumbling around us…

Or do our crumbling dreams carry us on beyond the rational to the eternal

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Visions turn into dreams as they ebb and then flow out with the even tide

Becoming memories of life’s journey, joys, and sorrows… dreams laid to rest.

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Photo: Dwight L. Roth

Today at d’Verse Ingrid asked us to write a poem about dreams and visions. I decided to do a reflective piece with questions I find myself asking.

Join us at: https://dversepoets.com

What Are We Thinking? (an opinion piece)

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We humans think we have it all under control

An answer for anything and everything

We think we are entitled and God is on our side

Atrocities abound as we seek to fulfill our greed

Everyone thinks their cause is a righteous one

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Perhaps we should stop and reassess our place

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We build houses and towns on the beach

and then worry and cry out about Climate Change

as hurricanes blow and ocean rise as floods come up higher

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We build our houses and towns in the tinder dry forests

Where forest fires sweep through leaving only ashes

and we cry about weather and Climate Change

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We cram ourselves into big cities packed like sardines

dying like flies when pandemics come through

As landscapes turn into buildings, asphalt, and concrete

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We clear-cut land and turn farm land into developments

We strip the Amazon basin of trees which help the earth breathe

Then ravage the land seeking minerals and gold

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We wonder why the climate is warming and seas are rising

We have world conferences on Climate Change and reducing emissions

We cry about cars giving of carbon and cows passing methane gas

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What we don’t seem to realize is WE don’t control much of anything

Nature is the one in charge here… and will do as she wills

Yes. we can do better and slow down our toxicities across the planet

but nature has the final say and will do as she pleases.

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What we seldom hear mentioned in the midst of our outcries

is the need for Population Control.

Global warming makes little difference if populations keep growing

Famines, pandamics, wars, and devestation are waiting

if we don’t start talking about Population control

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Mask mandates are nothing compared to a population control mandates

China tried it with some very undesirable results ;

But, this planet can only hold so many people before things break loose

So, my thinking is we need to have a global conference on Population Control

Not a popular political platform;

Nonetheless, Mother Nature will eventually do it for us

as she keep the planet in balance… and when that happens

Covid will look like a birthday party…

as we who living here try to figure out if We can survive

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Photos: Dwight L. Roth

Shortness of Days

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Fall brings coolness and shortness of days

Age brings awareness of life’s transient journey

I lose the invincible feeling of youth

replacing it with more time for contemplation

Lengthening shadows of night become clearer

now that I am counting time with a different clock

Reflecting on life changes // I wonder

“Will I be around in ten more years?”

“…or even next year?’

“What challenges will aging present?”

Covid-19 amplifies thoughts of life’s finality

Numbers of casualties rise and fall with the seasons

Questions of, “What if?” shadow my thoughts

Yet, life is to be lived rather than hidden away

So, until changes slow me down, I will press on

doing what makes me and others happy…

Using common sense, enjoying the blessings of life

Photo: Dwight L. Roth

Real or Reflection?

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Real or Reflection

Normal or reflection of normal

in our changing world

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Reality

skewed makes many question

what is real and what is just a reflection;

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Reflections of wishful thinking and deceit

bombard us with every click of the key

with every click of the channel

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What was once foundational

now undermined

becoming the skeptics challenge

making one wonder

“What is Truth?”

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Photo: Dwight L. Roth

Stairway to Heaven

A little girl saw a long wooden ladder, with wheels as tall as she was, sitting inside the Cathedral door. Seeing the priest greeting Sunday parishioners nearby, she reached over tugging on the arm of his robe.

Her mother quickly pulled her away and said, “Don’t bother the priest while he is greeting people!”

The priest overhearing what was happening said, “It is quite alright. What would you like to know young lady.”

“Is that the stairway to heaven?” she asked.

“No child, Heaven is much farther away than this ladder could reach. This one is for changing our lightbulbs.”

“Well, where is God?” asked the little girl.

“Oh, Only mouths are we, who sings the distant heart which safely exists in the center of all things? God is the center of all that exists, both near and far.”

“And, thank you for asking.”

Today at d’Verse, Sanaa introduced a Prosery prompt. It requires a short prose piece, only 144 words, that includes a line from a poem that she has chosen. The line is“Only mouths are we. Who sings the distant heart which safely exists in the center of all things? – from Rainer Maria Rilke, “Heartbeat.”

Join us at: Https://dversepoets.com

Photo from the Stasbourg Cathedral: Dwight L. Roth

The Unanswered Questions of War

(Written just prior to the first Iraq war)

What do you say to the little girl’s mom

When all she has left is the child in her arms

And the girl is there, and the girl is dead…

What do you say to the little girl’s mom?

*Refrain:

What do you say when no answers come

When the battle is over and the war is won

How can you say it was worth the cost

When the one you loved most is lost?

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What do you say to the mother whose son

Was killed in the war so that freedom is won

And the boy is there and the boy is dead…

What do you say to the mother at home?

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What do you say to the young wife at home

When all she has left is the flag in her palms?

And her husband is there, and her husband is dead

What do you say to the young wife at home?

*Refrain:

What do you say when no answers come

When the battle is over and the war is won

How can you say it was worth the cost

When the one you loved most is lost?

*

What do you say to the little girl’s Mom…

Photo: Dwight L. Roth

Dwight L. Roth 3/03 & 4/04 Originally written as a song…

Today at d’Verse, Bjorn asked us to write a war poem. War is such a tragedy, with so many lives lost and maimed. But the saddest part is collateral damage of children killed in the carnage. I was asked, before the first invasion of Iraq, what I thought about President Bush sending troupes over there. I said it will probably end up being another Viet Nam. A no win war with extreme losses. With the second invasion and the expansion into Afghanistan, it has become a quicksand for the US. This is my song I wrote back at the beginning, as I thought of all those families that would be displaced and permanently damaged by the war.

Join us at: https://dversepoet.com Then click on the Mr. Linkey box and read more.

Then What? (Political Satire)

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When distasteful statues of heritage are gone

and the founding fathers permanently buried

and our country’s history erased // then what?

When the constitution is rewritten

and modified and amendments deleted

in the name of progress // then what?

When the drive of capitalism is sedated

and wealth redistributed to those who have never worked

and banks replaced by government 666 chips // then what?

When everyone is forced into political correctness

and all the “I’m sorry people” are reconditioned

to all think alike // then what?

When “swords are beaten into plowshares”

and all the guns are recycled to a few

who keep the disgruntled in line // then what?

When religions are squelched for deviant thinking

and non compliance revives the “burning at the stake”

and “God is Dead” // then what?

When anarchy and revolution turns into an Orwellian nightmare

and Big Brother/Sister monitors and controls everything we do

and creativity and culture become acts of treason // then what?

2024 is not that far away!

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As I watch the conflict and clashes between protesters/rioter and Police and National Guardsmen in Portland and across the country, it makes me wonder whether they have thought beyond their present anger, the destruction of Government Buildings, De-funding the Police, Black Lives Matter, and anarchy. 

I have compiled some outrageous questions, all containing some truth, for them and us to think about!

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My Friend Ivor Stevens said it best in his Haiku:

Cold steel’s not power

Love can’t be an iron fist

Hand in hand we breathe

https://ivors20.wordpress.com/2020/07/27/a-collection-of-ponds-turns-into-a-lake/

Painting: Dwight L. Roth

Feeling Rejected

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On Good Friday Christians reflect on the death of Christ on the cross, and what his sacrifice means for us. The human side of Jesus suffered unspeakable physical pain. Some say that God will give you strength in your time of need. But it is my experience that when that time comes, it is very difficult to feel that presence. Even Jesus cried out on the cross, wondering why God had forsaken him in his darkest hour. Pain and rejection seem to be Siamese Twins! It is very hard to have your whole world collapse and not feel rejected. This is why it is so important to have persons who will walk with you and help you regain your perspective once more, understanding that God loves you even when you don’t feel it.

Dark night of the soul
Feelings rejection’s pain
Forsaken // alone
Stretched out on life’s cruel cross
Has God turned his face from us?
In His pain he cried
“My God, my God, why have
you forsaken me!?”
Feeling rejection’s pain
In that dark night of the soul

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Painting: Dwight L. Roth

My 50th Class Reunion

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Today, I attended my 50th class reunion.
A slideshow with funeral sounding music
Reminded us of how we used to look…
With young faces, smiles, and hair all in place.
As I looked across the crowd, I barely recognized a handful.
Like me, they all have changed // age stealing youth.
Some, no longer with us, were cut down in their prime.
Why do people go to reunions?
Is it out of curiosity to see what damage was done?
Is it to compare levels of aging?
Perhaps it is to see old friends
old boyfriends
old girlfriends
What brings us together after fifty years?
Nostalgia and pride // holding on to a past long gone…
Or maybe it is share our achievements
Our failures
Our divorces
Our losses
Our pain
By this time, there is little to show off any longer.
Nature has leveled the playing field
for jocks and nerds, the homely and the beautiful.
Just like falling leaves reflect the beauty
of spring past
and summer gone
So, we too reflect the beauty of vibrant youth
Quickly fading into a sunset of obsolescence;
One last burst of effort before the frost sets in…
Only the full Hunter’s Moon knows why we came;
And what we will take with us as we go…
And he is not telling!
He knows where we will be when the next fifty rolls around.
We will, by then, have taken our place in the cycle of time;
Just sand in the hour-glass for the next generation’s countdown.
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Photos: Dwight L. Roth

Are You Really There?

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When life begins to implode on you, it is tempting to begin questioning everything you believed. When prayers are not answered and God seems absent, it really sends you for a loop! This is what happened to me many years ago.  In time, all worked out and life got back on track. It was during this time that I wrote this poem.
My God… MY God… Why Have I Forsaken You?
“I will never leave you nor forsake you”
This promise I had learned
Then my God why am I forsaking you
Are you really there?
Is there method to all the madness
or are you just a good feeling
that comes and goes
to those who wish it so
You seem so far away
Too distant to hear my cry
Too removed to feel my pain
Answers don’t come life goes on
mixed with tragedy trouble and heartache
I have lost all hope
My life sits on the edge there’s no one here for me
No one to share the pain
Still I pray…
Are you really there?

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Photo Dwight L. Roth

Today at d’Verse, HA asked to write a confessional poem that revealed something of ourselves that we may or may not normally have written. I wrote this poem many years ago when, at mid-life, I went through a time when everything in my life seemed to be falling apart!

Join us at: https://dversepoets.com