If I rely on myself for truth, I waste my time,
for who am I, certainly not the Creator. —by poet
My truths are bubbly and smile
as light shines from my eyes and lips.
Like a blossom unfolding through the ages, after my spirit
was regenerated, through boundless weather, I hearken to God’s word.
My truth is found in careful study, each scripture verse.
God’s sword is sharp, surgically removes my sin and shame,
scolds me, builds me up, points the way to paradise.
In family and friends, I look for what is real,
stand back if I must to size up,
not for judgment, just for clarity.
My truth is found in peace and calm, humility, strife.
Experience rounds out my truths, for I’ve seen miracles happen.
I rely on Christ to brave
through the darkest night; and colors; and poetry.
Old-fashioned parloring. Dreaming
of friendship with tea and cakes.
Feathered fascinators, blooming hats,
all dressed like a bountiful bouquet.
Chatterbox of lovely talk, liveliness
in eyes and lips. Excitement of togetherness.
A cozy of ladies is the best. Dress us up,
kiss us with tasty treats and sips of chai.
Such is the picture of yesteryear, placed
in the Southerner's space. Children pass by
with hardly a howdy-do. Little girls pleased
by a lit up screen, chattering at a box,
unable to size up the others by their character,
wearing ripped up jeans and too small shirts.
These girls don’t know the beauty of baking,
the blossoming of a glass teapot, the lumping
of sugar, an afternoon of nestling in proverbial
glow with sun streaming its shadows on the wall.
One girl glances up, her eyes fly off, like butterflies,
into the space behind the frame, the fragile glass
removed for this moment of time. Her great-grandma
smiles and weeps, holds hope for this progeny.
Suddenly, the girl of twelve, is whisked away in time.
She’s seated at a fresh set table, not questioning why.
Time will serve us well if we wait
Omitting the obvious is not wise
Opportunities come slowly and go quickly
Choose carefully after counsel
Losing sometimes is good for winning
Obstacles are sometimes good for us
Size-up the situation before pursuing
Endurance yields great rewards
Take time to study and do the research
Optimism and realism are first cousins
Test and evaluate with caution
History doesn't need our assistance
Excess is often used to draw attention
Extreme desires need to be curtailed
Danger signs are posted for good reason
God designed us to have healthy fears
Excellence is achieved by perseverance
growing pains...
and so she grew,
because that’s what we all do.
she reminded herself that
her body
is her vessel.
it does more than just
exist
for a compliment,
for a boy,
for a mirror
or for a photo.
she told herself that her size,
and the tightness of her clothes
were not indicators of failure.
the fullness of her belly,
would never determine her worth
she found comfort in words like these.
yet she never,
not once
had to self assure
when her pants hung loose
or her stomach yearned for food,
when her waist curved inwards rather than out
not once,
not ever.
People want to pull me downtown Lester Brown
they wear sandals on their feet and my head wears a crown
prizes in their wicked eyes a cricket wicket bouncing highs
inside I’m a lion pride and they’re all pesky little flies
they land they bite but I don’t die never will but still they try
aiming all this hate at me competitors apparently
beating me would make their day but I’m not bothered anyway
some times they will celebrate
they say that I have been beaten
but I have no idea until one of them starts speaking
what they deem a victory doesn’t feel like a defeat
so I don’t even argue I just let them have their treat
they are not my competition but I’m the one they seek
they think if they pull me down they will not be so weak
blind to the fact whatever happens they’ll be the same freak
backwards people think this way they don’t stand from their seat
hoping that somebody will fall down on the concrete
so I’ll be the prize that they size up
I’m an Olympic medal
but I’ve heard of times they’ve mess up
the chain’s off as they pedal
making me the champion
and them Olympic Special
Why am I attracted to certain types of women
The ones that display that indescribable feminine trait
Demure yet with that certain openness and lust for life
Those that send out those unmistakable signals
All men know what I'm referring to
It's a very feminine charm that beckons us to come hither
That says I want to know more about you
And we are all too eager to oblige
Hence the beginning
Stage two of this trial period happens
Engaging in conversation, we size up each other
And then it either ends at that point
Or it becomes the beginning of a relationship
With further exploration
More times than not, the relationship flourishes
Because the initial attraction was genuine
And is followed by a lasting affair
It is amazing how one's instinct
Usually steers us down the right path
Until we discover it, love is very difficult to define
It is all encompassing, life changing
The ultimate emotion, three cheers for love
LOVE, LOVE, LOVE!!!
I have felt betrayal, been broken hearted. I've been called names and taken advantage of.
I have been used, manipulated and conned and made to do things I didn't want to do.
I have allowed these things to happen. I have been an enabler, a just smiled and kept going.
These have built a rage inside of me that comes from the pit of my stomach it's like a bear waking after the winter to no good.
I am starving for love and furious that I have been betrayed and deprived of it.
I could attack and find a feast or i can learn from it and prepare myself for next winter and stock up on what I need so this doesn't happen again.
I'm not a baby bear I'm a grown bear full of wisdom in the bank and prepared to use it this time, because I can see a feast for many that would like to sit on my table after the winter and appreciate and treat me well, and for the leeches, the takers the Narcissistic snakes, let them try to size up someone else but be prepared to take me on.
Because I am a Bear fiercer than many, try to do me wrong, but remember I'm not forgiving.
Bubbles in the form of dancing smiles.
Up, up, up they go before they pop.
Belief in better days ahead - party
Block in parking lot, petting zoo out back.
Lean in and hear, “local library lends books.”
Energy of eager who’s, what’s, wise.
Synergy of flapping wings and tasty ices too.
Believing his birdy eyes — a crowd
Intentionally gathering. Naked faces!
Roar of hovercraft
Driven by remote control.
Duped, stupefied,
Robin uses his God-given wings,
Overzealous, to size up this intruder.
Now crowded in evening-blue, fore-twilight sky,
Epitaph of a salesman playing chicken.
5/22/2021
More Texas Idioms
(that have been around)
“since Heck was a pup”
Composed: by Tom
1/11/2021
Heck was “fat as a boarding house cat” and that’s no bunk,
some thought that he, was “tougher than stewed skunk.”
They said never play cards with this man called Heck,
cause “He’s on a first name basis with the bottom of the deck.”
He’s so crooked, “you can’t tell from his tracks if he’s coming or going,”
and if Heck says it’s hot its “afixin” to start snowing.
He’ll leave you feeling confused “as a goat on AstroTurf” or a dope,
I couldn’t tell if “I’d lost my mule or found a rope.”
The purpose of my visit was just to size up this brawler,
He lived “left past yonder” about “two hoots and a holler.”
I quickly saw that Heck was just mostly idle prattle,
that he was a man “who was all hat and no cattle”.
He was “yellow as mustard but without the bite,”
and “if he was melted down he couldn’t be poured into a fight”.
With visit over as I headed out I heard him say,
“never kick a Cow patty on a hot day.”
I’ve been “From here to there and back again,”
no more am I going, now that I’ve been.
This pathway is doubly dangerous
That one who cuts my stitches
A tad too short
Is the same who reaches
Carelessly too close
To that dreadful corona mortis
God’s own anatomical variant
A beautiful but fearful anastomosis
A marriage of a sweet obturator
And a rather inferior epigastric
My ultimate dream
Is to broach and to ream
That sweet canal
So I ignore that fire
Set on my path
I size up the breadth and girth
Of a choice that was never fair
Whatever it takes, I swear
I won’t stumble into oblivion
Neither will I sway into varus
Until my tools are packed
And my destination reached
Mine will be a glorious tale
With an ending marked
By an exaltation of larks
Hands steady as a rock
Eyes keen as a hawk
I fear neither the dark nor the cold
I will push and I will reach
For that prize of gold
My heart will sing
When I restore with my knife
So never ever forget my name
For this will not be my last dance
In this dark pelvis of life!
Life is an uphill battle
No credit only blame
You play the cards they hand you
But there’s no meaning to the game
The rock rolls down upon you
And you try and you try again
As you justify existence
To live in the world of men
Oh, Krakatoa
Raining down on me
Oh, Krakatoa
You size up situations
Dig your trenches and hunker in
Wear your machine gun bullet halo
As if you had a chance to win
But in the country of your spirit,
You’re awaiting deportation
Still, your wet eyes greet the morning light
In stagnant celebration
The anvil of your calling
Keeps pressing for response
As the blacksmith strikes the molten mash
Amid your veil of sparks
And it seems like you’ve been bent this way
For a hundred-thousand years
With the peoples of antiquity
Who learned to explain their fears –
Oh, Krakatoa
Raining down on me
Oh, Krakatoa
tomorrow she died
today she lived
yesterday she cried
the breeze opened her eyes
and she tried to size up herself
Like ones self
cremating in the wind
it was the end
small and short no where to resort
she carefully apologized
where is her mind
death is unkind
ashes spread over the ocean
a clear portion
not an abortion
but death
without wealth
She loved herself
like an elf
she shoveled the yard
not a retard
but smart
I will always be in your heart
By thirteen I was quite tall—
Five-foot seven—friends were small
Always tallest in my class
On school lines—was always last.
Friends were shorter, more petite
Always looked to size-up feet
Compare shoes, I do not fib
Was self-conscious—mine were big.
Their size five to seven, fine—
I was BigFoot! Mine was nine!
Teenage complex anguished me
BigFoot phobia, you see!
Later friends caught up with me
Height and feet grew handily
Soon size nine in grownup form
Looked upon as kind of norm.
Thinking back on “BigFoot” years
To fit in, drove me to tears!
Teenage stresses to compete—
Happy now with normal feet!
© Sandra M. Haight 2015
All Rights Reserved
~3rd Place~
Contest: BigFoot
Sponsor: Skat A
Judged: 05/07/2015
I was gonna kick the bucket
When I turned on the TV
They were all in it for money
And there was none left for me
So I called up my accountant
Had me start a new web site
I sold them stuff they wanted
And it kept me up all night
Then I went all Egypt on them
And I just collected Dough
I became a master baker
And I watched the kitchen grow
When I thought I’d bought the farm
And I’d be forclosed on by summer
Who knew back in the spring
That by fall I’d have a hummer
Don’t rush to cash in your chips
The casino’s up all night
Have some faith in god and self
The sunrise is soo bright
You can’t get used to dying
And your times a one shot game
Don’t predict your wins and losses
It’ll never be the same
To size up for the box
Before the shoes are tried on
Doesn’t say much for the sox’s
Or the Genes when you are gone
So next time you think its over
Go to bed for another day
Hold your dreams close to your chest
And play your hand just one more way
And maybe your dream lover
Or the fans can see you dunk
When you play the game tomorrow
And come out of your funk
Why sparks debate,
Hurl questions here;
Argue with fate,
Touch changing spheres.
Note the harsh surge,
Offer to feel,
Wise words now urge.
Size up goodwill,
Allow odd takes,
Yes thoughts once plain,
Seek sense that makes.
Worth once again,
Healing takes time,
Own touch sublime.
Leon Enriquez
15 November 2014
Singapore
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