Choice is a void,
fear of the unknown is a delicacy we can't afford,
regret, a high profile plug,
Loved ones, our own asphyxiation, slow grueling, and cold. Cruel.
Still they are our duty(to break, then bury and afterwards even about whom brag.)
If you don't believe me just wait and watch and in all honesty my only hope is that someday i will be wrong.
Someday I will be wrong.
For my: Always Right, Never Wrong 11-Year-old Son :
“Why do you think that girl
Is smarter than me
in Go Far?”
“Ben, lots of people
are smarter than you.
I’m your mom
and I tell it to you straight
because I want you
to keep reaching.
I want you
to keep being curious.
I want you
to keep reading
about all the little things,
and the big things,
that you don’t know about.
Things such as:
how can sea creatures
survive on the bottom
of the deep black sea?
Things such as:
what makes the sky blue,
for you and me?
Things such as:
what is actual
serenity?
I’m 39, and I find myself:
“curiouser and curiouser.”
Ben, grow to be good
at what you love.
Don’t try to be the best.
"The best is yet to come."
Keep playing the trumpet.
Practice the theme song
to ‘Jurassic Park’
that you taught yourself.
Go draw your own labyrinth,
and then solve it.
Keep the center of yourself
centered, like an apple core
that doesn’t stray
from the middle
of its home.”
I often don’t know what I’m talking about
And even then tend to speak in generalities
But somewhere inside the tangled thoughts
I’m pretty sure some truth lies.
I’ve heard it said all mothers at some point
Wish their children dead, although of course
Most keep this dark secret buried and well hid.
Fathers on the other hand sometimes
Only want the kid, a gift, a jewel, a treasure
That far surpasses the vehicle it came in
So here we have it, Life reduced to mere transaction
A simple matter of cause and effect
Cost and reward often not considered
Until it’s far too late to then reject.
(11/18/25)
I am grateful for this wonderful parenting perk…
How when it comes to being a parent
time and wisdom together work….
We start out as parents…unsure of what we’re doing…
hoping as every day is about to break…
we do our best to help our children grow
without making too many mistakes…
Then, when our children have children…
having fumbled through parenthood…we understand
when it comes to our children’s children
we have an opportunity to be grand.
And when their children have children….
If we’re blessed this is our fate…
having fumbled our way through grand-parenting
we now have the opportunity to be great
May we be blessed as parents…
knowing there will always be something as parents we lack…
that our children understand
even when we are not there to hold their hands
we will always have their back.
(“Multiculturalism Merit Badge”, 2010, original oil)
Unsolicited
Yesterday I called my daughter
To give unsolicited parenting advice.
She listened and heard me
And even thanked me after,
But then I went away
Wondering who am I to give advice
And how does my experience as a child
Compare to my daughter’s kid's today.
It’s really two different worlds
Of different values, pressures and expectations.
In our talk these key words of parenting arose;
Love, fairness, patience
And something more elusive,
Maybe even you could say the Holy Grail
Of parenting, equanimity,
That quality of dispassionate composure
Especially in the face of stress.
And maybe this is what makes me feel
My advice rings hollow
And so better left unsaid.
If we don’t embody the lessons we teach
What use are they,
And if we embody them,
What need for them to be even given.
(9/2/25)
When the sun bloomed
And the bougainvillea blossomed
And her cheeks unfurled
Into a long smile
At sunset,
I had her in my arms;
I knew her.
When the whales sprayed silhouettes,
And the fishermen made their bets;
Porpoise stitched the sea
Into a sunset dress
For her to wear at the dance
That night after we argued
About strangers.
(And please don’t talk to them
And don’t drink
And don’t dally about
And don’t be someone else
I don’t know.)
Don’t be a stranger
When you come home
when the sun rises,
Blooming.
May we be blessed to embrace the irony
that the faster our children grow…
if we want to keep them close to us…
we have to let them go.
May we be blessed to always show up for our children
In 3 important places…no matter how much they’ve grown
In front of them…to cheer them on
behind them…to have their back
and next to them…so they’ll never feel alone.
As a parent, it's fulfilling feeling
For our children though their grown-ups
Still need them parental guidance
Near or far has grade constant connection
Is necessary for their growth and development
Constant communication is a must
Family is bond that is life strengthening
Family relationship is a lifetime responsibility
Genes is networking, it's a longtime business
Success depends upon good management
Family is like a tree, needs care and caregiving
Parents are the source of life, love and survival.
I bought myself four yogurts
by morn they were all eaten
Bought my kids four more
~ unsweetened
Whatever you do as parents remember this one thing
If you please…
How the raising of your children is a lot like planting trees:
You nurture them with your time
your energy
your food
your water
your sun
But it isn’t until years later…
while sitting in their shade
you know how well you’ve done.
Brooke Hampton…a children’s book author
Is where I’m pulling today’s Nella’s blessing from:
Speak to your children
as if they are the wisest
kindest
most beautiful and magical humans on Earth….
for what they believe…
is what they become.
She's probably still tied to her mum's apron,
But she definitely needed no chaperon,
So to Dubai she went for a competition,
With many of her mates from the same institution.
She suddenly became a sensation,
When behind a hotel door of a foreign nation,
She romped,
Not with one but with many they bumped.
The story was whitewashed as a hype,
All over the internet was the tape,
Not of a ravished fellow,
But of shame with a joyful bellow.
She rode like a horse while others were there to cheer,
She stroked up and down as if on an armchair,
Bad parentage casually strolled each inch of the room,
Moral decadence boomed in the gloom refusing to sweep with a broom.
Then after, the mother came on air soaked in tears to blame all except self,
She dressed like for a funeral flanked by her own set,
Her pictures looked solemn but her wears had the hearts of a yippee,
She was just the carricature of the way her girl clothed herself as a groupie.
Whilst the mother blamed the school,
The school in turn called the mother the fool,
Meanwhile, the society badmouthed them both,
But if at all there is a blame it is to everyone in this boat.
This is a story of parents raising three children, a wonderful adventure you have to know
Children are brought into this world by a loving couple who are planting seeds to help them grow
Raising a family in today's world is no easy chore
A future of fun and games is surely in store
Balancing of work and family. patience is required, a science in itself
Bedlam on this rainy day, a mess everywhere with books flying off the shelf
Looks like another round of bargaining is about to begin
Negotiations with children is a long drawn out fight, getting them to listen consider it a win
Kids turn into grownups somewhere along the way
Take the time to listen to them you may be surprised at what they have to say
Lives you have created and soon you will set them free
All your hard work raising them is about to pay off, you just have to wait and see
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