The Face

There is a face in the crowd,

The eyes are focused,

The lips are silent,

As all stories have been,

In the ocean of stories,

Amidst a sea of illusions,

Before a thousand eyes,

Unseen.

Each story is just words,

Sounds upon nothing,

Which live just as long,

As the life of a sound,

With voices that fade,

Along with the heartbeat,

Of the face unseen,

Which you saw in the crowd.

The face cannot be drawn,

For it is not remembered,

Yet behind the eyes,

Breathes a living soul,

Which wept and laughed,

Which danced and cried,

Living the tragedies and triumphs,

Which make us whole.

In a thousand years,

Each face will be dust,

With the children’s children,

Forgotten too,

Yet to learn one face,

And the soul behind it,

Can defined life,

And what is true.

Visions of Truth From La Jolla

We live out our lives,

Where the day meets the night,

Where silence meets sound,

Where the sky meets the ground,

Where the water meets the wind,

Where the end again begins,

Where the sun meets the rain,

Where love means pain,

Where our laughter meets the tears,

Where strength meets our fears,

Where the eyes meet the soul,

Where the half becomes whole,

Where are the past meets what will be,

Where the blind through the heart can see,

Where my heart keeps asking why I am here,

To the mind such truths remain unclear.

A Morning in La Jolla - from 10/26/19

With sharp eyes and dark hair,

And a heart that thirsts for love,

Purpose was a quest and treasure to find,

Amidst a sea of souls,

Learning something from each one,

Teaching something along the way,

Making a difference or so I thought,

For the world is unchanged every day.

With vision weakened and hair gray,

Wisdom has replaced joy,

The world walks past me as I write,

The sun rising as it did before,

The thrill of the quest is no more,

Knowing the day approaches faster,

Where silence will replace my prattle,

As the sun rises over another nameless stone.

I believe that God gave me good seeds,

I went forth planting many seeds with love,

Now as the planter I must have faith,

Though most seeds I will never see grow,

I know they must grow because I planted well,

Not upon the stones but in good soil,

So that they may bear fruit for other souls,

Which came through my tired hands.

The Party

The restaurant is empty, 

 Abandoned for years, 

 Alone within the silence, 

 I still hear laughter and cheers. 

 Faces of friends, 

 I will not see again, 

 Walking through the shadows, 

 Where my heart descends. 

 My old school campus, 

 Remains vivid in my dreams, 

 Though I visit the location, 

 Nothing is as it seems. 

 I feel though I am separated,

 Buy a thick pain of glass, 

 Never able to return, 

 To those times in the past. 

 The party was lively, 

 The party was good, 

 I got a few laughs, 

 I knew that I would. 

 Yet those that I knew, 

 Have lives of their own, 

 How can I disturb them, 

 When I should be alone. 

 Heaven is fulfillment, 

 With smiles upon the streets, 

 With the warmth of God’s love, 

 In every face you meet. 

 I would be at peace alone, 

 Upon a rock by the shore, 

That his children may be in peace,

Within his joy forever more.

Teacher of Teachers

 Caroline from the Carolinas, 

 Came forth with pure heart, 

 Her foundation in faith, 

 Held God’s hand from the start. 

 The teacher from Nazareth, 

 Who died for our sins, 

 Showed her how to love, 

 And where to begin. 

 She found a good man, 

 Who loved the Lord too,

  In a ministry of faith, 

 Showing others what is true. 

  Planting good seeds, 

 Will bring forth good fruit, 

 Yet from the teacher of Nazareth, 

 A powerful truth took root.

 She became a teacher of teachers, 

 Which in faith coincides, 

 For those teachers took her seeds, 

 To plant them far and wide. 

 Then from the heart of God, 

 Came a tall order, 

 To share salvation across languages, 

 Through Books without Borders. 

 To return after the years, 

 To our teacher we were blessed, 

 To show her fruits in our lives, 

 To share all what is the best. 

 For there is no separation, 

 Of sharing from love, 

 What she shared with us first, 

 She shares with our Father above. 

Heart of a Mentor

A young girl from the country,
Felt love from an early age,
Finding direction from our Savior,
Finding her purpose in love,
For love is inseparable from sharing,
A truth from our Heavenly Father.

She found a soulmate for sharing life,
A man called to live for God,
Fulfilling a mission of ministry,
While she strengthened his faith,
A foundation for each other,
Helping souls find the light of direction.

Hearts of the young called out to her,
In the calling she found direction,
Molding young souls for new life,
With a strength in faith and love,
To become a force of change in lives,
Because she was led to be their mentor.

Ministry and creation joined hands,
In a book which came from her heart,
Sharing love in a bridge across language,
To touch lives without fear of borders,
So their children could breathe faith,
In a life which they did not have.

Years passed though the effects have not,
Good seeds grew far and wide through fields,
Bearing fruit of many flavors and colors,
Blessing more lives she would never see,
To share with love in the union of hearts,
And we shared in the joy of her smile.

We go forth from who we once were,
Because she dreamed of all we could be,
And we shared in her dream with faith,
Now carrying her where we each go,
Shining through every one of our lives,
As we carry the heart of a mentor.

Ocracoke Strong

 7 feet of water rolled through the homes and lives of people on Ocracoke North Carolina when hurricane Dorian hit the islands directly. You can help them rebuild their lives at  https://www.nc.gov/volunteer/donate.

 The waters came, 

 The storm has passed. 

 Life goes on, 

 For hearts will last.

 Strength does come, 

 From up above. 

 No storm can sink, 

 The ship of love. 

 The hearts of young, 

 Past the graves of old. 

 These souls live on, 

 Through stories told. 

 From days which passed,

 And tales of yore,

 Those who come here, 

 Meet all those before. 

Their hearts stand strong,

And for each other.

A community bond,

Which is like no other.

Amidst these hearts,

Embraced by the sea,

Rebuilding their village,

I wish I could be.

 Our hearts were with them, 

 Standing with them still. 

 Though we are miles away, 

 Our hearts feel them still. 

 Greeting us by name, 

 As if we were there folks. 

 For this is how they live, 

 On Ocracoke.