It’s February, 2025, the month to celebrate Valentine’s Day. The usual greeting cards and boxes of Whitman’s Chocolates (do they still make them?) will be exchanged… maybe a new red sweater or shirt will end up in each other’s closet… a nice dinner out to celebrate the love… all good, all recognizing each other as being thought to be worthy of each other’s love and affection.

I am all for it! I absolutely love Valentine’s Day! Bring it on!
I love being loved, I love being “in love,” and I love to love!

But a poem about love did not pop up in my brain this month… timing is a little off, I guess. No, what popped up this month is a subject that has been weighing heavily on my brain for some time… so, of course, you get it in a poem of mine. 

The subject is Lifelong Learning.

As some people my age (and younger) are adding the years to their lives, I notice the conversations are more about the “good old days” and the fond memories of yesteryear than they are about today and the future and the new things they have learned… the things they can’t wait to share with their friends.

Remembering the past can be lots of fun, can’t it? But learning about new things can be just as exciting! Believe me!

And I, who can tend to jump to conclusions, have determined (for myself) that not bringing new ideas and new thoughts into my life as I age can tend to make me old before my time. I believe (or fear) that it could shorten my life, or at least diminish the quality of it… God forbid!!!

… just something to think about… Enjoy the poem.

And, in honor of Valentine’s Day… and every day…

“Whatever the question, love is always the answer!”

LIFELONG LEARNING

Lifelong learning is a lifelong journey.
It begins when you’re born, it ends when you die.
Your own personality can pose an obstacle
To your ongoing education… it is true! Oh, my!

Pride or stubbornness or fear of submitting
To the process of discovery as you live
Are all things that can slow you down in your learning.
Above all, dear friends, stay inquisitive.

It’s said that half of what we’ve not learned in a lifetime
Could easily have been learned were it not for our pride.
We thought we knew better; or we didn’t apply thinking at all.
One thing for sure: our talents were “unapplied.”

Now, with age, we see things differently.
We are excited with the nature of discovery.
But we no longer have enough time or energy to partake;
Are we doomed to end our days playing the lottery???

I THINK NOT!!!!

“The education of a man is never completed
Until he dies,” said General Robert E. Lee.
And… “Learning is the only thing the mind never exhausts,
Never fears [nor] regrets,” spoke Leonardo da Vinci.

And, according to Montaigne, Socrates himself
Took up music and dancing when he was older.
He is said to have thought it was “time well spent.”
(Imagine if he had learned it when he was bolder!)

We often learn more by looking for the answer
And not finding it in our exhaustive pursuit
Than we do from learning the answer itself.
So, continue searching, and remain resolute!

It is essential for you to keep moving… keep learning…
And keep evolving for as long as you’re here.
Stay curious about everything; learn as much as you can.
Your quality of life will increase! Persevere!



GANDHI:
“Live as if you were to die tomorrow.
Learn as if you were to live forever.”

January the first came and went… and no new poem amongst your emails for January, 2025? 

Really???

Though I have, this year, quit making New Year’s Resolutions, I can only say I will work toward being more timely.

A lot happened last year over which we seemed not to have much control… the wars all over the world, the U. S. Elections, extreme weather, to name a few… not to mention the misinformation that slips into one’s consciousness when we’re not paying attention… 

I spoke with my dear friend Ann Barclay about it. She’s a Counselor in Maine, and one of the most practical minded people I know. (We speak on the phone from time to time, but haven’t seen one another for nearly 15 years; yet, when we do speak, it’s as if we just sat at the same table and had a cup of coffee together this morning… you know… that kind of friend.)

“TRUST THE PROCESS” is one of her favorite sayings… While writing a poem about trusting the process doesn’t change anything about the world around me, it gives me some insight into how to look at my life, and helped me relax the reins a little bit. Hope you enjoy it.

And by the way, whatever the question, LOVE is always the answer… a good thing to remember.

TRUSTING THE PROCESS

People you lean upon to assist you through the “hard times”
(And you’ll have them now and then — they come to us all)
Will listen and ask questions that only you can answer…
You’ll get a bigger picture to make a better call.

The key to success is to trust the process.
Stay focused, and never lose sight of your goal.
With unwavering belief in your abilities
Your path to victory is within your control.

Sometimes, it’s the journey… the path you take…
That teaches you a lot about your destination.
As Winnie-the-Pooh says, “Life is a journey
That’s to be experienced, not a problem that brings agitation.”

Trust there is a purpose and meaning to your challenges.
It really is all rigged in your favor, you know.
Things can go wrong for all the right reasons.
Good things are always on time. Mind the flow!

December 2024’s poem, TRUST, took longer to write, so it’s late, and I apologize. Christmas “stuff” kept pushing the writing to a back burner, it seems. But as I was writing it I couldn’t help but notice that the words, TRUST and TRUTH looked alike (five letters long, and the first three the same), and I wondered if they were connected by the same root word.

Sure enough:

“The words trust and truth originate from the same linguistic
 root: proto-Indo-European — DERU — meaning something
firm, solid and steadfast.”

It seems that TRUST and TRUTH have been two sides of the same coin since the late Neolithic/early Bronze Age. (I should have taken that linguistics course in college!)

By the way, there’s a wonderful restaurant in my town (Kirkland, WA) named DERU. Their food is honest and straightforward, and absolutely DELICIOUS! Next time I go in, I will ask them where and how they decided on the name.

Have a lovely holiday season… and remember, whatever the question, love is always the answer.

TRUST

It’s said that trust is the “glue of life.”
It’s the most essential ingredient for effective communication.
“Trust” and “truth” come from the same root word.
Without truth, then trust is no longer a consideration.

Trusting is hard, but knowing who to trust is harder.
Use your intuition to determine the way.
You can usually trust your gut, better than your mind.
If it feels right, it probably is right. Pay to play.

Trust is like a mirror. You can fix it if its broken,
But the cracks will always be there in full view.
Nietzsche says, “I’m not upset that you lied to me;
I’m upset that from now on I can’t believe you.”

Trust starts with truth and ends with truth.
It’s built with consistency and, with time, will grow.
Whoever is careless with the truth in small matters
Cannot be trusted with the big ones. Oh, no!

Trust yourself. You know more than you think you do.
As soon as you trust yourself, you will know how to live.
That trust that we place into ourselves
Can make us feel trust with others… and more positive.

“To be trusted is a greater compliment than being loved.”
One George MacDonald is credited with these words.
Trust is the foundation upon which more can be built
It requires a track record. Truth is the catchword!