September 2022’s poem, “Elder Wisdom,” was first published in 2017 in my book, AWAKENINGS. Though short in length, it packs a powerful lesson, I think. It reminds us that we get back (usually, in like kind) that which we put into a thought… a philosophy… a project… a life!

If we think positively about something, then positive results will ensue; and the same holds true if we think in a negative vein… we get negative results!

Feed the positive, my friends. Feed the positive!!! You will be happier, and who knows? Your presence might make other people happier, too.

Remember, whatever the question, Love Is The Answer.

ELDER WISDOM

Old Cherokee wisdom passed down to the young
Around a campfire burning bright…
The Elder Woman sharing her stories so wise
To a granddaughter basking in the light,

The subject was about a battle that rages…
(Couched in terms of two wolves in a fight… )
The fight goes on inside people each day
Between Good and evil — wrong and right.

Evil is anger. It’s envy and jealousy.
It’s sorrow and regret and greed;
On the other hand, Good is joy, peace and love.
It is hope and serenity, truths to heed.

The young girl turned to her grandmother and asked,
Her face in an earnest, questioning need…
“Which one wins?” She asked the Elder Woman.
The Old Woman’s answer: “The one you feed.”

With all the negative that is going on in the world today… senseless shootings of innocent people; the war in Ukraine, (heck, the “war” between our own political parties); inflation, recession, poverty, homelessness… where does the bad news end? (Oh yes, there’s still Covid in various forms! And now Monkeypox!)

With so much happening in the world that is negative, our emotions are on overload! And what happens with overload? In most cases, people experience numbness. They become unfazed by all the negative, as it can quickly become a new “normal.”

It’s dangerous to be unfazed, my friends, very dangerous. You miss out on all the good that exists. You can choose to deliberately focus on the good! Focus on what is going right all around you.

Rise above it all — listen to your heart, follow your path and have a purpose that is larger than yourself. Make sure it is one that is for the good of all.

Remember, Whatever the Question, Love is the Answer!

Here then, my poem for August 2022, “Finding The Good.”

FINDING THE GOOD

Never let a day pass without looking for the good!
Appreciate all that is positive in your surroundings,
And give every day the chance of being the best…
Your reward will be in the joy rebounding!

The odds of finding the good while thinking about the bad
Are not possible as you go about your days.
You will always find what you are looking for…
So, look for the good! (If you need to, change your ways.)

When you look for the good in others, you discover
The best there is in yourself! Mark my word!
Your chance for success and happiness and joy
Lies within your choice to find the good. Don’t be deterred.

As you focus on the positive you think fewer negative thoughts.
Your attitude improves and optimism is let in.
You are free to think about what you can do to help
To bring change to our broken world. Imagine!

Know you cannot do all the good the world needs,
But the world sorely needs all the good you can do.
A positive mindset will open you to opportunities.
You’ll overcome the obstacles! The choice is up to you!

Don’t be pushed around by the fears in your mind!
Listen to your heart, and the dreams it contains.
Plato’s words: “Reality is created by the mind.
Change your reality by changing your mind.” Use your brain!

“The most common way people give up their power
Is by thinking they don’t have any.” (..Alice Walker)
You see in the world what you carry in your heart.
Carry love and hope. Share your voice. Be a talker!

I just returned from a “bucket list” trip to Normandy with a group of University of Washington alums — just 20 of us. And though I was alive, albeit a little girl, when the landing on the coast of Normandy occurred; and I had studied it and learned a little bit about it in school, I was not prepared for the scope of that famous battle — Operation Overlord — that turned the tide for the outcome of World War II.

From D-Day, by Stephen E. Ambrose:
“Operation Overlord, the invasion of German-occupied France in June 1944, was staggering in its scope. In one night and day, 175,000 fighting men and their equipment, including 50,000 vehicles of all types, ranging from motorcycles to tanks and armored bulldozers, were transported across sixty to a hundred miles of open water and landed on a hostile shore against intense opposition. They were either carried by or supported by 5,333 ships and craft of all types and almost 11,000 airplanes…”

“Success of Operation Overlord came down to a bunch of eighteen-to-twenty-eight-year-olds. They were magnificently trained and equipped and supported, but only a few of them had ever been in combat. Only a few had ever killed or seen a buddy killed — they had never heard a shot fired in anger…

“But when the test came when freedom had to be fought for or abandoned, they fought. They were soldiers of democracy. They were the men of D-Day, and to them we owe our freedom.”

The American Cemetery with its memorial is located on a bluff overlooking Omaha Beach and the English Channel. It contains the remains of 9,388 American military dead, most of whom were killed during the invasion of Normandy. The Cemetery was dedicated on July 19, 1956.

The monumental bronze sculpture, “The Spirit of American Youth Rising from the Waves” is in the center of the Normandy American Cemetery in Colleville-sur-Mer, France. The sculptor’s name is Donald Harcourt De Lue.

My heart is heavy with emotion — and it is full with gratitude for the sacrifice these young men made so that we could live in freedom. The engraving below the statue reads: “To these we owe the high resolve that the cause for which they died shall live”

SACRIFICE

Independence Day: A time to celebrate
Our freedom from oppression, and grief.
With further study, how it came about
Was through sacrifice, hard work, and the belief
That self-rule and independence were the better choices
For a band of independent-minded pioneers.
So, with determination to succeed, they fought the good fight.
To pursue independence and freedom. They did persevere.

The perseverance and the determination and the sacrifice
That many millions have endured to form
This country we all profess to cherish
Is beyond one’s imagination, beyond the norm.

And the beat goes on to protect our freedom:
Throughout the years America’s Veterans have shown
Their willingness to sacrifice for our country to remain strong.
They’ve earned our lasting gratitude. Many remain unknown.

Thomas Merton claims that the most difficult sacrifice
Is the pursuit and maintenance of peace for mankind.
“It demands greater fidelity to the truth,” he states,
”And a more perfect purity of conscience” … (to remind).

Freedom does not come without a price.
We take for granted the many liberties with which we’re blessed.
They have all been earned through the ultimate sacrifice,
Paid by members of our Armed Forces. May their souls rest.

Our flag honors those who have fought to protect it;
It’s a reminder of the sacrifice of heroes so brave.
The Stars and Stripes represent the very best of this nation…
A nation we must sacrifice for, in order to save.

If you don’t sacrifice for what you want,
What you want becomes the sacrifice. (Oh, my!)
You must sacrifice something to reach your goal.
What you let go of determines how high you’ll fly.

Madeleine Albright reminds us that “The ties that bind America
Are stronger than disagreements over any particular policy,
And far more durable than any party affiliation.”
It’s not “us or them!” It’s “WE!”