In Hard Times - For Debbie and for us all...

Deborah Kaplan is a friend I have come to know through some years of professional association.  She has been through recent hip surgery and now has a new injury to the shoulder.  If she can get the surgery, the recovery time will be at least 3 months and she has no one to help her through this.  I have included a link below from one of her emails, feel free to review.

http://www.gofundme.com/debs-hip-surgery

http://www.yourfitday.com/about-2/

I stand amazed and astounded,

At the way of things befalling us,

Speaking with a woman now,

As she is in pain and hurting,

With no one to turn to,

And no where to go,

Remembering of a woman,

Who was in the same pain,

Years ago but clear as day,

She had no one to turn to,

No one but her husband,

And as she cared for our baby,

With just one arm to use,

I could do nothing from afar,

To assist or help her,

Coming home on lunch,

I tried to set what I could,

Leaving her yet again,

To face futility alone,

Yet one person took notice,

Of the struggle we faced,

And while my wife recovered,

She cooked for our family,

While we struggled alone,

She brought dinner to us,

From the love of her kitchen,

Wonderful Arabic flavors,

And an arm around our shoulders,

To know we were not alone.

Yet each of us is a friend,

Knowing of some others,

And others stand out there,

Knowing of our lives,

So the incredible burden,

Of all of the sufferings,

In the lives all around us,

Could be no burden at all,

Would be no burden at all,

If we each asked the question,

Of what we could do,
Thinking how we can help,

Making a small change,

Thinking it no consequence,

Yet a brick is a small change,

Forming walls with other bricks,

Each one a small part,

To our fortress of strength.

Outside of Time

This was the last poem of 2011 for me, written on the night of December 30th as  I traveled alone in the fog while thinking of all that has been through the year.

Upon this misty road,

Through dark passages,

We travel bonded by life,

We are all touched by light,

As I walk with other hearts,

In the mists surrounding me,

Glowing in each other,

Progressing into the night,

Glowing for each other,

Some as individuals,

Some traveling in pairs,

With his light defining strength,

And her light defying beauty,

Draping the mist about her form,

As a white lace wedding dress,

For they are bonded forever,

Each adding to the other,

Forming a wondrous whole,

For when their fingers touch,

Time folds upon itself,

Today collapsing inward,

As the charm of yesterday,

Meets exhilaration of tomorrow,

For a soul does not know time,

And love is the timeless flow,

Meeting challenges of life,

Creating the solutions of living,

Unveiling mysteries of purpose,

While our light burns away the fog,

Creating the clarity of perspective,

To know all of how God blesses us,

As the soul does not count time,

While the elements fade around us,

For time is measured in changes,

And the soul never dies,

So I see these things in travel,

With the soul that walks beside me,

Tasting adventure in full force,

With pain and joy in beauty,

For our soul knows no time.

I Was There - Inspired by and Written for Ben Breedlove

Writing is my gift.  Ben's gift was taking the doubt away from countless souls that everything the Bible is telling us is true.  I could not help but write what I wrote after hearing his words in powerful silence.  I pray I am a loudspeaker, and even more can hear Ben's message through me.

See Ben's Story:     

My Video Reading:

 

I am just a younger guy,

On the road to knowing why,

Of how life is so good,

So we can share,

Though I do not come from wealth,

And I am not blessed with great health,

I know how much He loves us,

I was there.

Sometimes I’ve been through fear,

When I’ve felt that death was near,

I was so much afraid,

Of letting go,

But God pulled me through with love,

From in Heaven up above,

So I could come and share,

And you would know.

He has given me a voice,

For we all must make a choice,

As when its time to leave,

We all choose where,

I have seen the place aglow,

Full of joy as white as snow,

Filling my heart with peace,

For I was there.

Please don’t miss me if we part,

I am always in your heart,

We are never alone,

Through our love,

God is real with us today,

His light never fades away,

I give witness to you,

From up above.

When it seems all hope is gone,

Just remember you are wrong,

I came back with this joy,

For you to share,

So God’s love you know is real,

This is always yours to feel,

You can know that its true,

For I am there.

The Bridge of Love - For Kathy

Kathy lives in the midwest and works for the same company I do.  She recently succomed to a brain hemmorage and is fighting back to recovery.  I wrote this to use my abilities of writing to help her where I can.  If you would like to see her story, or help her family bear the financial burden of her recovery, please visit the site listed here:  http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/kathysmith143/journal

How could it happen,

When I am young?

How could it happen,

What have I done?

I was at home,

Doing what I do,

Then I was out,

Nothing more I knew,

Then as if dreaming,

I heard voices,

Some were toward me,

Others making choices,

I could hear my family,

I knew they were there,

They were reaching to me,

I could feel the care,

And friends beyond the circle,

With voices still unheard,

Raising hope in prayers,

God hearing every word,

My eyes began to open,

And through a blur to me,

Some familiar faces,

I began to see,

I could not lift a finger,

I could not say a word,

Yet what I wanted most,

Was them to know I heard,

As they were reaching in,

I was reaching out,

Their strength from the heart,

Became my proof and clout,

Knowing I would make it,

Moving more each day,

Smiling to my husband,

To hear what he would say,

Forcing every movement,

Taking every step,

Fighting back to freedom,

Back to the life I left,

Unto the day I can speak,

And I can walk again,

Sharing my new joy,

Of life and love again,

For all the friends and family,

And our God above,

Whom rescued me from darkness,

Across the bridge of love.

UPDATED -- Rosemary Harrison Losing Home to Cancer - Foreclosure News in San Diego California

UPDATE - Jan 3, 2012

---As there was a lack of other solutions, Rosemary Harrison is now temporarly renting a single room.  The quality of the room does reflect the meager monthly housing funds she has available to herself.  The cost of this temporary solution to my understanding was the loss of nearly all of her possessions left after the estate sale which resulted from the bank taking her house.  She has her clothes, her dog Aussie, and we are still by her side looking for a permanent solution---

I am writing this concerning a new friend we have quickly grown close to whom is in need of help.  She in her 60’s, alone, and facing foreclosure.  This happened not because of spending or getting into an adjustable mortgage.  This happened because of love.

This lady is Rosemary Harrison (https://www.facebook.com/rosemary.harrison3#!/rosyglow2001), whom immigrated from England over 40 years ago with her husband Ivan Harrison (http://coronadoplayhouse.com/wait-until-dark/castbios/harrison-ivan.html) .  He restored antiques like no one could in Nottingham and San Diego (http://www.yelp.com/biz/ivan-harrison-refinishing-antiques-rstrtn-and-frntre-el-cajon) , and they had all they needed in life.  Ivan had a love for racing and was involved in local NASCAR races for over 20 years (http://www.racingwest.com/news/articles/26367-biggers-wins-race-and-title-at-cajon-speedway.html) .  Through this, they gave their love to the community in the form of benefiting foster children whom could never otherwise enjoy such a thrill.  They raised money, worked tirelessly, and helped the community all through his racing career. 

Their next love was the theater.  Ivan performed on stage in England through the 1960’s  (http://www.alvinlee.de/pre_tya.htm)  , and took the stage once again at the Coronado Theater.  They both became very involved in production and used this as a venue for giving back to a community that gave them a wonderful life in California for so many years.  Ivan pursued this until illness caught up with him in the form of cancer.

This led to the greatest expression of love that I know.  Rosemary devoted the next few years to caring for her husband, and being by his side as his health declined.  Medical expenses grew, and money became short.  Through her heart and her tenacious English attitude, she made the bold decision to refinance her home for the medical funds needed to save her beloved husband’s life.  Ivan hung on to life beside his wife until the illness won, and he passed away nearly two years ago.

The loss of Rosemary’s husband led to the loss of their business known as Aussie Gold, which involved the sales of a revolutionary orchid growth fertilizer that he developed.  After the business went down, Rosemary lost the last thing that she had.  Her home.  She has been given notice to leave by January 1, 2012.

My wife and I are trying to organize some form of benefit to help her.  All she needs is a place for herself and her pets, not a mansion.  She has looked at mobile homes which would be a good option.  Yet her retirement minus living expenses leaves about $600 per month for housing.

The best thing in the world would be if someone in the real estate world could donate a small property or a mobile home in a park with an inexpensive lot rent.  This would give some real estate office wonderful community PR, and a VERY healthy tax write off for the end of 2011.  I am sure when we put this together that some people will donate some cash, but that may help with some moving expenses.  She herself said that she feels bad about receiving such help while there are already others on the street.  I told her that once she is taken care of, she will have time and means to reach out to others.  This we would do by her side.

I will be using my newly published book to help raise funds and awareness.  I need advice or direction from you in the way of helping to find some real estate office that could make the full or partial donation of a home.  She would of course benefit but it does not stop there.  Anyone who hears of this or participates will receive the full and powerful message that we can make a difference in the life of others.

This matter is very serious, I want to be sure things happen properly for everyone involved, but time is definatley running out.

Please contact me if you are able to help, or have any ideas on how we can help together.  If I can come up with an event and date, I will put time and details here.

Denver's Song

I can see him walking in the starlight by the lake,

I can see him looking at the sky,

I can feel him using his gift for all our sake,

He never seemed to stop and wonder why.

I can hear him in a song upon the stage,

I can see him standing with a smile,

I can see him flying just as far as it will take,

For reaching people made it all worthwhile.

Standing tall upon his mountain,

He stood tall for all of us,

He touched our hearts with his gift of song,

In the darkest hours I can hear his voice ignite my faith,

Its through the heart that we may all be strong.

You can hear him in the wilderness,

You can feel our spirits ride the wind,

You can hear his joy in the laughter of the birds,

You can feel the power of hope begin.

You can feel his passion rising to the test,

You can feel his heart on human needs,

You can see him search inside to find his best,

You can feel his power through his belief.

Standing tall upon his mountain,

He stood tall for all of us,

He touched our hearts with his gift of song,

In the darkest hours I can hear his voice ignite my faith,

Its through the heart that we may all be strong.

Within his songs we can stand together as one world,

Within his songs you feel the love of life,

Within his music you can feel the joy of love unfurl,

Within his music peace defeats all strife.

Within your soul he looks to see the gifts that you can give,

Within your soul he finds the answers there,

Within my soul I know that there is answers I can share,

Within my soul I see because he cared.

Standing tall upon his mountain,

He stood tall for all of us,

He touched our hearts with his gift of song,

In the darkest hours I can hear his voice ignite my faith,

Its through the heart that we may all be strong.

Voices

Voices

The transference of light,

Occurs in beautiful ways,

From the stars to the Earth,

Through words to the heart,

And from the heart unto souls,

Coming from the only source,

Shining through each of us,

For light must be directed,

To penetrate the darkness,

It may be reflected from us,

And magnified by our wills,

So that sharp and focused,

It can do the greatest good,

Doing good through our words,

Blessing others through actions,

No matter how small they seem,

As many people walk through life,

Without tasting of its true beauty,

For just a smile given freely,

May change a traveler to his country,

Inspiring him to do what is right,

Reaching many lives on his own soil,

In such diverse and unknowable ways,

Lives can be changed on their paths,

Courses become altered to destinies,

Simply because of free will,

When we use our words and actions,

To shine light to another soul,

And through that light we lift another,

Holding him up in times of pain,

Caring her through times of sorrow,

And we keep that light shining strong,

Until that soul can stand once again,

Shining light to many others,

Because through our words,

And through our actions,

We use our voices.