Best Paying Attention Poems
I took it all for granted.
The sky, the stars, the wind,
the flowers, the grass, the trees.
I expected to see my friends every day.
It was boring, dull,
humdrum, if you please.
So here I am, in my mediocre mind-set,
walking to a friends’ house, not enjoying a breeze.
Not paying attention to the sky, the wind, the flowers,
the grass or the trees.
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Avoid cross-combination by washing all surfaces (including your hands) that have been in contact with raw meats, poultry or eggs.
Thaw meats or poultry in the refrigerator, not in the kitchen counter: If you must thaw foods quickly, use cool running water or the microwave
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Mix foods with utensils, not your hands: Keep hands and utensils away from your mouth, nose and hair
On their way to Sunday mass
A homeless man they walked right past
Not a single coin put on his plate
They rushed right by to not be late
They listened to the preacher preach
Compassion to each other he tried to teach
When the collection basket was passed around
Plenty of loose dollars the congregation found
But one little boy took ten dollars out
And the lady beside him started to shout
“That is a sin boy; you’re going to hell –
Why did you do that? I want you to tell.”
He looked up at her with bright blue eyes
And said, “Why, ma’am I am surprised;
Weren’t you listening to what the minister said?
Some of this money should go to the poor man instead.”
As people watched him walk towards the door
The preacher stopped him and gave twenty dollars more
He said to the homeless man, “This is for you”
With a sparkle in his smile and his bright eyes of blue
The homeless man said, “Why thank you son,
This is a very kind thing that you have done.
I told my father who lives up above
That in this world there still is love.”
That homeless man got up to his feet
And slowly started walking on down the street
The whole congregation looked on with surprise
As he disappeared before their very eyes
A lot of the time It’s not easy,
Finding someone that can
Finish your sentence before
You can finish your thought.
Someone that appreciates the things
You care about.
To breathe life into you
When everything else feels
Exhausting.
A lot of the time
Vocal gets exhausting &
The physical is just that.
Sometimes,
You run out of words.
A mantra that only the soul understands
& heals with no further explanation,
To be understood in authentic bliss.
Bilingual as the stars and the wind.
A taste the sun unravels to the moon,
For better or worse.
It’s amazing how some of the best pictures
Happen when we aren’t paying
attention
With a sizzle, and a woof and a squish and a zoom,
I jumped in my spaceship and I flew to the moon.
The moon was sticky, not smelly, and no cheese around.
I was irritated by how earthy was what we found.
We jumped back into the spaceship, and I pressed the red light.
We decided to go to Mars next; it was plainly in sight.
The gas indicator light said, you are all out, sorry my friend.
So here I was, stuck on the moon’s earthy west end.
Try the spare fuel tank, my crew said, pointing out the right button.
I tried to remember which one it was, and I found tasty mutton.
My first mate leaned over and pressed a panel that was green.
And fuel began filling my gas tank, clearly seen on the screen.
We all laughed and we joked as we sailed on to Mars,
And we pleasured each other with stories as we sailed through the stars,
And I made a note to myself, but avidly failed to mention
That the next time I took the commander’s course, I will pay more attention.
Cold down to the bone.
I hear the winter in the wind.
I walk on ice
and breathe in snowflakes.
Words
by susan q. miller © 2013
Words are a vapor that lingers
hanging upon the heart
As weapons---chains
or
As healing hands, reaching out, holding on.
Words,
a doorway, a window,
A wall, a barricade.
No entry or welcome
they say.
Long after the sound of the words are dim,
their meaning echos,
Over and over they echo.
Attentiveness is the currency of life & to flow
it needs your permission
It can't flow without you within its wave
so, you must control your attention
Our observation is a key to the doors of the many
mansions available to you
Unlock your dreams by awakening to this as many
doors are in need of walking through
Sleepwalking is an action of the blind & many are
living life with closed eyes
Their perception has been blocked by narrow thinking
leaving the mind in a state of compromise
This dream is as real as any other & you are water
in a world solidified
Tithes are paid with the flow of your attention so
keep track of the direction of your tides
Avert the eyes to dismiss the undesired for this is
needed to avoid sinking ships
When you drop anchors at the point of fluid focus
the results are really hard to miss