Culture

How the Mighty Fell! ---King David’s dirge for the previous King of Israel and his son: King Saul and Jonathan who died at the battle of Mt. Gilboa (2 Samuel 1:19-27) On your heights, O Israel, is sprawled a slain Gazelle. O how the mighty fell! O how the mighty...

  The One Lone Juror ---for the very brave man who refused to acquit Lindsay Clancy of the crime of murdering her three small children You did not listen to the whines and pleas— You did not let emotion blind your vision. Like one small ship, storm-tossed on raging seas,...

  Soul of a Prophet: A Trialog “But the house of Israel will not listen to you…” ---Ezekiel 3.7. “Well, how exciting. How delightful. Here’s a formula for sheer disaster if there ever was one. I’m afraid I have a bad, bad feeling about all of this.” “I think your...

  Nelson and George ’Twas Providence granting old Nelson to George, Like how he survived at the Valley of Forge. Young George was a horseman who knew well the breeds And shone like a knight when he rode atop steeds. With Nelson’s physique and undauntable style, The horse was the...

  On to Better Days In this 250th year of the USA, this nation of 340 million goes its way. Which way that is, nobody knows. How could somebody know? There are too many individuals to make that so. Each person has life, liberty, pursuing happiness, and goes about their...

  Self-Exploration The furthest shores within my mind are lands whose sands I must explore— becoming a conquistador; to do this quest I am inclined. Deposits await to be mined for gems whose worth are rare, therefore, the furthest shores within my mind are lands whose sands I must explore....

  Victory With darkness cast on fertile lands, The men took muskets in their hands And wives took charge of farms and fields. They hoped for peace and blessed yields. And then, the King sent forth, by night Relentless waves of crimson blight That raided homes and burned the towns,...

  The Cristero Centennial In Mexico a hundred years ago, The government forced secularization. Its liberal politicos roared “No!” To worship and religious education, To convents, vows, processions, celebration Of marriages and funerals that show Devotion in a Christian civilization. The communistic head of state and crew Were ruthless hypocrites...

  A Potpourri of Aphoristic Verses   Confronted with the truth, some will embrace it, While others, sadly, will refuse to face it. * The underestimation of a rival Is not the surest pathway to survival. * When power brokers squint and get all pensive, The huddled masses grow more...

  A World Without the Wednesday Child "Monday's child is fair of face, Tuesday's child is full of grace. Wednesday's child is full of woe, Thursday's child has far to go. Friday's child is loving and giving, Saturday's child works hard for a living. But the child that is born...

  China Made She sits before her grey machine, _knits, cottons, or brocade; with sweating she begins to sew _to create China made. Her stitches— even, fine, and tight _without due accolade; her nimble fingers graft and grind, _in sewing China made. I see her in my mental eye, _I’m...

  The Savage Moon The clouds... Tonight they hide her, but she’s there: A savage, ghostly horse without a rider. The elders claim, “A feral, vengeful mare Who menaces and circles ever wider To blight the night!” I quake! This is no myth Of frightened men, no cloak of words...

  When Opportunity Knocks “Opportunities are like flies. We kill most of them.” ---Roy E. Peterson We all have heard the phrase, “Opportunity knocks at our door.” Yet sometimes stubborn, it must knock us to the floor. Perhaps we’re in pajamas and will not let it in. Because we’re not...

  Legend of the Griffin Akin to giants of Greek fame _Who ruled the ancient world, He held the minds of mortal men— _A marvel to behold: An eagle’s beak, a piercing eye, _A freedom-loving wing, A lion’s frame, a fearless heart, _The valor of a king. The ancients loved...

  Advantages of Restaurants Food quality has dropped, Price rises have not stopped, Selections are decreased, Most portions aren’t a feast. Yet still I have to say I didn’t cook today.     The Most Educational Dinner If I could welcome any five folks from world history, To dinner, where...

  On the Death of One Too Young to Die It’s been some years now but the month is still _Entire given to her memory: In August born and August died, she will _No writ of clemency Bestow on those of us who loved her well And still too deeply...

  This Too Shall Pass "Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the Lord." ---The Bible (KJV) Go tell the glist’ning rocks upon the shore, The moon shall call her waters back again. This too shall pass, for it has passed...

  God’s Funeral "When George Eliot complimented Spencer on the lack of wrinkles on his forehead, he replied that nothing had ever really puzzled him" ---God’s Funeral, A.N. Wilson "The riddles of God are more satisfying than the solutions of man" ---G. K. Chesterton How smooth the forehead, sharp the...

  Star Festival The legend of the love of a heavenly weaver girl and an earthly cowherd was recorded in the Eastern Han dynasty 2000 years ago. Stars of the Summer Triangle are Vega (weaver girl), Altair (cowherd), and Deneb (bridge). The emperor of heaven allowed the lovers to meet...

  Solitude Bright Venus, crescent moon, faint pearl-gray sky obscurely light the scene. A giant dolmen prostrate, astride huge boulders: megalith collapsed, rock flotsam strewn across the fen. Thin corkscrew trees extrude brown elfin leaves. The time is evenfall, the hour when quietude reigns: no sounds of creatures stirring, of...

  The River Not Taken ---after Robert Frost The sloop’s main sail was hoisted tight But in the fog I now was lost; I reached where half the stream veered right The other left. Encroaching night Meant I must choose; but at what cost? I had no time and so...

  "In God Is Our Trust" ---The Star-Spangled Banner Where were those words, those hallowed words, “In God We Trust” once born? Francis Scott Key once composed them on a misty harbor morn. Held on a British boat he could not fight the enemy, So fought with words, while our...

  Confession It’s not so much the telling of my sins (The inner battle stations I’ve assigned To flesh and spirit and the latter’s sad Retreats) that makes the air go thin- Then-thick, the box feel so confined. It’s not so simple as just feeling bad. It’s more, I think,...

  A Paradox They're all too sharp and bright. Sedulous kids. Rich parents raised them. Teachers, old and wise, preserve their greatness. Even fate forbids ill luck from harming them. Wealth in their eyes. Their days are filled with butter, nights with cream, and afternoons with friend groups having cars...

  A Prayer of Aristotle "Anyone who wonders whether we ought to honour the gods needs a whipping." ―Aristotle Our twelve great gods I serve with veneration, Pay tribute as accustomed rites suggest, And sing glad paeans pleasing in effect. But reverent reason finds unification Of countless godly spirits coalesced...

  The Sparrow It started in the dark and early hours. Kyiv—asleep, enjoying blissful dreams. Then missiles streaked. Explosions. Debris showers. Smashing walls and windows. Sirens. Screams. Ivan recalled this, walking Podil’s streets. No patrons enjoying coffee and cigarettes. Abandoned stores were still. Some rubble heaps. He wept to see...

  Chemo Refusal Doctor’s gown off. He looks again. Goes tough, speaks plain: "It’s back. Aggressive. Don’t deny. Without the chemo you will die." The patient’s striking. Coal-black hair. A mouth on fire. Some adults stare. Married. Two kids dressed with flair. Teaches math. Her children stare. "When first discovered,...

  Deliverance Upon the bank, this waters wave, _And beckon you, "Come wade." You step into the chilly stream _And sip spiked lemonade. The current flows around your waist. _You think, "Why be afraid?" You feel sand shift below your feet. _The torrent’s swift and strong. You turn to face...

  Rain I felt like walking in the rain, _Can’t say exactly why. I make great efforts in the main _To stay completely dry. But once you’re wet it feels just fine _So you can stroll or chat, No more a worry than sunshine. _Most fears are much like that....

  The Story of a Plague I sorrow at the darkness of the news Of mortal pestilence and storms of shame. I watch scoundrels fighting to hide from blame Or blur their definitions to confuse The madness that has led to deaths, not mine, Not yet (that’s still impending), but...

  People Forget "Being unable to cure death, misery and ignorance, men have decided, in order to be happy, not to think about such things."  ---Blaise Pascal, Pensées People forget: that empires end, That after singing, silence starts; That after every party's joy We part, and blight destroys our heart....

  Good and Evil The professor was so proud Of his knowledge and his theories. He loved to prod his students With his question and his queries. “If God is only good. Then how can evil exist? God must then be evil, And that’s why evil persists. “If God created...

  Who Hears a Robot's Prayer?   I. He said the stones themselves would start to sing But no one could have guessed where this might lead--- Now prayers are offered by a crafted thing, A soulless creature---not of Adam’s seed. A supplicant which cannot weep or bleed. We see...

  Rasputina Confers with Her Cohorts “Rasputina” is the feminine form of the Russian name Rasputin. He of course was the religious impostor who gained a malign influence over the Romanov family, and used it to manage important political decisions and state policy in Russia. He also enriched himself, and...

  Warfare by Remote Control Babies are screaming from the night time sky, preventing sleep amidst the blasted homes; twenty-four seven, there’s a buzz on high, dipping and diving when a person roams. Leaflets, like litter from an autumn tree, fluttering groundward, strewing pockmarked roads, tell dispossessed folk, “Again, you...

  The Lessons of Lot How long had my watch lasted at the city gate? For days (or weeks? or months?) I’d scanned the endless fields In search of some dim hope, some needed twist of fate From what I knew was due, and soon would be revealed: A fear...

  Impressions How often are impressions deemed profound, Accepted fully, carried all around, And stated with assertive satisfaction, From merely a few moments’ interaction?     The Hand of God I have felt the hand of God Securely on my shoulder, With comfort of His staff and rod More clearly...

  A Strange Sun The ships sailed up the river’s mouth, Against a steely, clear-eyed gale, Far from the vineyard of the south, The olive grove and terraced vale. So different from their native lands Appeared, unto each legionnaire, The green hills wrapped in silver bands. And somehow, so much...

  The Man from China The man from China struts around D.C. And silences the chatter about tariffs. He says, “You’ll like this deal, just wait and see, Call off your trade-war words and snooping sheriffs.” His pocket’s full of cash and oily deals; Just do not talk of how...

  The Ballad of the Ghost Mountain Boys ---to the “Ghost Mountain Boys” of World War II— especially the Iowa farm boy who was my grandfather.   Prologue There was a day that unawares awoke the world from sleep and sent it witless out to fight with devils in the...