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Random Poems 43: What Hurt Jesus' Heart? And Other Poems
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Random Poems RANDOM POEMS 43
-saiom shriver-
WHAT HURT JESUS MOST?
What most hurt Jesus' heart?
Was it the scourging? the crown
of thorns? the carrying of the
cross? the thirst? the sleeplessness...
Those in the Sanhedrin who lied about
Him?
Was it Pilate's cowardice? the brutality
of the Roman soldiers?
His followers who slept through His
agony?
His followers who ran away?
the betrayal of Judas?
the denial by His chosen successor Peter?
(the crumbling of His chosen Rock?)
No.. it was the few seconds
on the cross when He thought
Abba had abandoned him.
SONG BORN OF SILENCE
When the night is most
still
then the nightingale's trill
spontaneously spills
(to C Seikel)
CRAVES NO LIMELIGHT
Pouring forth his all the
sun craves no limelight
growing mango and lime
with a sliver of his light
IT SNOWS AT SEA
It
snows *
at
sea
Quiet
falls
in flakes
Melting
designs
*
Leave Form For
all
**************
(dedicated to Julie and David
on the death of their mother)
JESUS' FIG TREE
He did belittle you..
but soon he'll bebig you..
and in the spring
with blooms he will wig you..
in summer he'll summon
jade garb
to resprig you..
and in the fall with
fresh fruit he'll refig you
ALLAH'S ALTAR
All Merciful Allah
.. on His Olive Tree
Altars..
He has placed
.. Olives for All
JEWISH UNHUNTER
God's lightning cleaved
the heaven's asunder..
and out of them
She spake in thunder...
There is no such
thing
as a Jewish hunter!
(dedicated to Debra Wasserman
and Charles Stahler
of Jewish Vegetarians)
BUDDHA'S PEST
They kill no creatures
in Bombay or Birmingham
or
in fair Budapest..
Everywhere is the Spirit
of Buddha
to whom
no creature
is a pest.
SUN ARRAYS HIMSELF
Over the lip of the earth
broke into night the sun.
A little cloud
.. a baby herald
ran and told everyone.
Each little cloud soon
caught the sun.
Each little cloud stopped
Babe Ruth's home run.
Himself sun arrays
in His own rays
and as He arises
all birds He arouses
His rays are of
pink and purple and rose.
(to MBVC of Columbus)
UNBIDDEN
Unbidden
buzz in
.. the bloombibbing
bees
(sparked by Ram Dass' line:
'when the flowers blossom
the bees come')
AWRY GROWS THE RYE
When God's green grows
it's rarely in rows
.. the rye grows awry
.. unruly the rose.
Freely wind blows
Unstraight..river flows
Unchained.. fire glows
rarely in rows.
(to Rosalie Quine
and S Freundschuh)
BLOOD SWEAT AND TEARS
We have nothing to offer
you.. say the cows of
their gravy.. but our
blood, sweat, and tears.
(to Ingrid Newkirk of PETA)
(cows' blood.. containing
adrenal fright hormones..
which are correlated to
heart attacks...
sweat.. containing arthritis-
causing uric acid..)
UNCONDITIONAL LOVE
Because they are each
unconditional in their love,
the ball is always in
both of their courts.
He always makes the
first move.
She always makes
the opening gambit.
He always fires
the first greeting salvo.
She always makes
the first overture.
(to Mrs and Mr R Essary
of Colorado)
CHANGE THE WORLD IN FIVE HOURS
Henry went to hospital
Twas a research hospital..
and took a picture of an ape
in a restraining chair.
And took it to an international
picture wire
called Black Star
which sent it round the world..
and Gandhi saw and knew
that the treaty had been violated
.. and cancelled monkey export
.. because Henry in 5 hours
.. saw and reached for
.. one bright and reachable... star!
(to Henry Spira of Manhattan.. maritime
worker organizer, public school teacher,
effective animal rights worker whose
teacher wrote a biography of him.)
SWALLOW WING
Because of her God
will sooner bring
a world of no more suffering
.. where none are swallowing
a chicken's or a swallow wing.
Over fields all fallowing
rise flocks of follow Wings
.. feeling holy Spirit Wings
.. all flying birds His following.
(to Nita Nickol)
BEAUTY ETERNAL
What a wonder to see..
on the
very same tree..
fresh blooms of youth
and wise sweet fruit.
to Julia Hull, retired
AU teacher
MICHAEL DUKAKIS
Red is his courageous passion.
Blue Grace his pure dispassion.
Blazing White his all
encircling compassion.
(to Michael Dukakis..who
wins more votes every year)
DIVINE MISTAKES
The ruts made
by a visitor's drag race
have left pools
in which
butterflies sip.
NOT ROOSTER PECKED
Every year
Edith
became less
and less
rooster-pecked
(to Jean Stapleton)
MAGNET OF ALL KEYS
Love turns the heart
into the magnet
of all keys..
.. and forges
the keys to
all hearts.
THREE SURVIVE
Three survive the late summer scythe.
First
the humble violet.. which lies beneath the blade.
Second, the mighty centenarian
oak too strong for any knife.
Third.. the royal purple ironweed..
so awesome is its beauty..
death forgets his duty..
and stops in his tracks.. abandons the
beheading of goldenrod and white daisies,
the decapitating of blue chicory and pink
clover..becomes transfixed..
and asks God for a new assignment.
(to Bob Lance who could raise his hand temperature
10 degrees in 5 minutes... they became
ministers of healing)
PITCHER AND SEA
We gave him a
pitcher. He
gave us the sea.
(written in gratitude to Clyde L of Maryland who
turned back on our water
with a special hook the night before he paid our water bill)
REBELLIOUS INSURRECTION TRANSFORMED
The Great God can behind all twirl..
the vast universe' gyrating swirl..
so that our rebellious insurrection
becomes our glorious resurrection.
RAINFALL PLUS DEW
How can it be
that there is more of vine's grape juice
than the rainfall plus the dew?
ELVES IN A CHRISTMAS STORE WINDOW
Like elves in store Christmas windows
decorating the windows for children
who are to all passing on the streets
visible.. to all inside the store invisible...
the actions of anonymous
saints
are known to all angels
but not necessarily to the world.
to helper of the poor M. McCool Trenta
LINKLING
A spiral swirl
of winter weed
Each tiniest wheat-hued needle
had caught a globe of dew..
a crystal rosary of 59 beads
already goldchained inside
and awaiting only
the Master Jeweler
to forge the links.
(to Charles Marshall)
MIRACLE SURPRISE
Miracles are often a surprise..
beyond
mathematical surmise..
but sometimes as predictable
as Godsired sunrise....
They give absolution..
bring reunion
solutions..
in their downfall
of mercy's ablutions.
(to Paul Obis, Chicago
founder of Vegetarian Times
at the age of 24.. before
he sold it it had grown
in circulation to a quarter
million subscribers)
REFLECTION POWER
As the pure bright mirror
transmits the morning
sun,
we need not understand God
but only pass God on.
to Richard Marshall
A TIME FOR SPEAKING
A TIME FOR SILENCE
On top of water light glitters.
Underneath water light glimmers.
Sometimes his love for her shouts.
Sometimes it quietly shimmers.
(to D and E Belair)
SUSAN LUCCI, BRUCE'S SPIDER AND BILL W
Robert Bruce's spider after
8 human destructions of his web
sustained the 9th.
Bill W after 9 lapsed dryouts
cofounded AA
Isaac Tigrett after 14 trips
of 10,000 miles each
was finally able to see his teacher.
Susan Lucci after 18 nominations
won an Emmy on the 19th.
The author of Gone With The Wind
had her manuscript accepted
after 40 submissions.
The second hand after 3599 tries
was able to move the heart
of the hourhand.
SUBLIME LIMES
How awestriking
How sublime
that out of slime
God makes lemons
and God makes limes.
COCONUT PALM
Sweet coconut palm
with such giving palms..
His leaves are his psalms
and coconuts his alms..
In one palm gesture
he bequeaths....
the shell-dish
..the pulp meal
and the inner sun..
as
external balm
from his inner calm.
(to the Mayasandra family
which has always continued
the chain of giving
of their palm trees.)
MARTHA D
None desired to reproach
nor to preach
gainst the fragrant
gentle tree of peach
for they gazed in awe
as the branch to twig
her
supply pinched not.
Meanwhile the sun
annually the peachtree
did im-peach.
(to Martha Duffy who
was still driving several
hundred miles to see her
family in her mid 90's)
UNIVERSAL VERDICT
God's universal verdict
is "Not guilty"
as all blessing as the sun
ever gilding trees
