Sharing

2

October 14, 2022- Once upon a time, three of us went trick-or-treating.

We were never out of each other’s sight,

stayed clear of any house whose lights were off,

and had no worries about bullies trying to raid our stashes.

When we got home, all three stashes were dumped on the dining room table.

Mom and Dad went through the pile, with fine toothed combs,

looking for signs of tampering.

They never found any, but I am grateful to this day that they did this.

I was raised to share, to not hoard.

“This is myyyyiin!” seldom, if ever, came out of my mouth.

If it did, the soap bar was at the ready.

Grown, a long time ago, I still share-my time, my energy

and, to the extent that is prudent, my money and my thoughts.

I try not to overshare. Friends and family have enough going on.

Being a burden to anyone is not my style.

Winds and Tremors

7

March 30, 2020-

What has changed?

What has been blown away,

by the winds?

What has cracked and fallen,

in the tremors of this

lugubrious season?

Greed is blowing away,

though it is grasping

at branches,

and trying to

deflect our attention.

Pride is collapsing,

being confronted

by a chastening.

Lust is becoming

irrelevant,

in the stirred dust,

of a cosmic haboob.

The selfish cannot

ignore the cries of

babies,

of their grandparents,

of those who can’t move.

on their own.

Those who stand on

ceremony,

are finding

that ladder

is

toppling.

Bedrock, alone,

will keep us upright.

The Road to 65, Mile 104: Stubborness

2

March 12, 2015, Prescott-  I got a good rest today, it being still Spring Break until Monday.  Having a base to  which I may return is always a comfort.  I will likely be free from a short-term obligation, after tomorrow, and will be able to take on more work, until summer comes around.  That will make me a familiar face in the local charter schools, as well as the public institutions.

I am, by nature, a flexible soul.  There are certain things about which I won’t budge, but all in all, I believe, as I said earlier, in going with the flow.  I am finding a few people, one of whom would like to depend on me, to a large extent, to be quite stubborn,when it comes to avoiding responsibility for their own lives and making necessary changes.

I suppose that’s human nature.  We get comfortable and expect things to stay the same, in perpetuity.  To me, though, not monitoring a situation and adjusting, as needed, is the lowest form of selfishness.  No one can live, fully, as if others don’t have a right to their own lives and dreams.  This selfishness comes out, of course, in everything from theft to road rage.

No one is entitled, pure and simple, to anything that belongs to someone else, be it possessions, dreams, or, in the case of someone outside the family, time.