Tag: hope

Mustard Seed Steps

I’m taking mustard seed steps

To get where I ought

These steps are going to take

Much longer than I thought

But, you know baby steps

Always lead to motion

That move mountains

And are cast into ocean

Move that mountain

With just the faith of a seed

A small amount

That you couldn’t even see!

This insignificant little seed

Grows into a mighty tree

‘And birds of the air,

Will come and lodge in its branches’

And just like that tiny seed

That appears to have no power

You think you have no power

Over a mountain

But you can say to this mountain, move.

Yes, mountain, I’m talking to you!

And it will move

And nothing

Absolutely nothing

Will be impossible for you.

Tonight After Midnight

When darkness and shadow come creeping in

I think of you and my night begins

I close my eyes and silence comes

The strains – they fade

And tranquility hums

And then I see you

There is peace to find

You appear quite clearly, there, in my mind

You sit there by my sleepy hollow

You sit there by my bed

And in your hand you hold a rose

Of softest deepest red

And all the night long you smile

You’re there it seems for eternity

Until morning comes and calls to me

January Calls

Ah, January, I see you’ve brought me some ice. Please leave it by the door. I don’t mean to be rude but when you come around, you bring me down. Your clothes are drab, your demeanour cold and your jokes for all things winter, are getting old. I know you have to visit and I don’t exactly give you a warm welcome but it’s the same on your side of the fence. There’s no love lost, is there?

Still, you do make me smile sometimes, with your tales of Christmas Past and your Very Best Wishes for the New Year. You quite respect those who brave another of your fierce tempers and make it through to warmer times. I see that, as you go, you leave me with some hope for longer days and brighter mornings and the promise of the sun on my face. So thank you January, you are kinder than I thought. Ah, I see I have another guest. Can you say hello to February on your way out?

Ah, February, I see you’ve brought me some ice…

A Brighter, Better Springtime

Let’s celebrate this season

It’s springtime at last

So far, we’ve had heat waves

And cold winter blasts

A spiritual awakening

A time for hope

A moment for faith

An era for growth

While we may not have sun

That’s warm enough to burn

The cycle of life

Has finally returned

There’s a bitter side to spring

Many people get depressed

Overwhelmed by expectations

To be their very best

Spring is when many

Mental battles are fought

And not just at Christmas

As is commonly thought

For some, spring is often

When morale takes a dive

It is also when people

Take their own lives

Outside is now thriving

But inside not so

The heart may be frozen

And cold just like snow

When I was summer

I resisted spring

But now I’m in Autumn

It’s a wonderful thing

I hope that they see

Through the dark and the grey

A light shining through

To a brighter day

I pray that all

Of the shadows are chased

For those who can’t smile

When the sun strokes their face.

-Sue Young

The Game

I wrote the following verse a while ago, about ten years ago. This is how I felt at one time, but I don’t feel like this now. A wise friend said to me lately that our writing from the past is still valid, still important, simply because we felt like that at one time in our lives, so it’s still a part of us, and we shouldn’t dismiss it. (Thanks Mike. You inspired this post).

His advice got me into thinking that our past writings are like part of our photo albums. Would we cut photos out of our albums because they are no longer relevant? I’m sure some people do and have, but they are denying themselves their life story. It’s certainly a part of us we shouldn’t deny, as we need to know where we’ve been, in order to know where we’re going. We can learn from our writing from the past. What I’ve learned, is that hope is real and it does manifest. It’s very easy to feel that the future is bleak, and we may feel suicidal at times, I’ve had their number on my phone before today. www.samaritans.org 116 123 UK or Suicide Hotline.

The problem with suicide is, it’s short sighted. We can’t predict the future. However bleak things feel and how almost supernaturally impossible it is, to see past the darkness at times, the future, unbeknown to us, can hold untold wonders. Moments of this darkness will come back and try to prove us wrong I’m sure, but all in all, there’s nothing quite like looking back at bad times with a detached eye and thinking, things did get better, after all. Regardless of what unfolded, a time line of your happiness levels can be very useful.

Keep your old writings as a measure of how far you’ve come, and dip into them after several years have passed. It may trigger you to make important changes in your life. That snapshot, just like the snapshot in a family album, might finally allow you to see where you were in the past, where you are now and how far you need to go to achieve your hearts desires.

 

Life’s a lonely game

you shake the dice and your number comes up.

And in the aftermath of carnage

hope hides, a dream stirs, clinging to the dust

The devastation of the explosion

will only make you miss a turn

and you’ll have to go back –

five paces.

Well, you know, I don’t want to play on this board no more

Cos no one plays fair

I’m going to bed, turning in

Throwing in my hand

Too many snakes

Not enough ladders.

 

 

 

 

 

It Ain’t Over…Endurance

God waits for our reaction. He watches how we handle the adversity,

whether we handle it with love and self sacrifice,

or chose darker, destructive emotions.

Regardless of the fact that we may want to scream and shout

Regardless of the fact that we may want to break down and cry

He watches for our reaction

He hopes beyond hope that we are patient

That our patience knows no bounds

He BANKS on us, hoping we are loving and compassionate

He BETS on us, hoping we are caring, accepting and understanding.

He HEDGES that we endure our suffering with dignity and grace.

And whatever will be, will be for our good and for the good of all.

It Ain’t Over…Forgiveness

Forgiveness 

Sometimes, we can’t stop life throwing us curve balls or dashing our hopes. Sometimes, we can’t stop the pain or the suffering, but we can control how we decide to react to all of those things. We can bring peace to our pain by letting go.

We have the power to love even when we are feeling crushed. No one can stop us blessing people or wishing them the best. No one can stop us accepting our situation and turning it into something wonderful. We can’t control what other people do, even if it impacts on our own happiness. If other people make decisions because they are hurting, we have to let them make those decisions. We have to let them go through their own life lesson, and when they come out through the other end, the only important thing, is to be there for them.