If I were, a Democrat!
I’d contain the dancing
longer, on the little hardwood floor
Representative Bachmann whirled and swirled
attracting lots of moths
Pretty woman, not shy to speak
she captured hearts for a moment
Then came Perry
from Texas, be wary
who rose like a shining star
then flamed, and became
another also ran
Come on Cain!
Cause ’em pain!
Hit ’em where it hurts!
Politicians, beltway blindness
business is the answer (mostly)
to whatever ails us…
under attack
women, take a number
but wear your tennies
you too will need to run…away
Who can be next
with their neck in a noose?
I think Bobby’s a pretty good bet!
Jindal’s doin’ good!
Pop him up, to take the heat
overcome poor ole Norman the doorman
oops!
wrong book!
poor ole Mormon, Romney
(I think I can; I think I can)
chugging along, hangin’ in there
waiting his turn for the guillotine
Your guesses welcome!
Lin 11/11
Green color
bring the green focus
Winter pastures green and growing range
away the weary brown
Suddenly, it seems, the world’s carpet is back
lush underfoot
The buds swell, and the warm spring sun
first burst of green
announcing colors come
Protective shells are shucked
as life and increased energy
wrapped in soft spring green
In the areas of soft ground
softened by freezing and thawing
produces tiny buds
as the farmer watches
tunes itself to the earth again
“What we have here?”
Study
plans
boxes
plants
planted ranks appear
click genetics
soil, sun and moisture in communion
our livelihood comes
The orchestra plays
as God develops green
and give thanks …
Selah,
Lin April 2011
Graduating!
of graduating from here to there?
Grandson Keller graduated today
from the lawnmowing tractor to a big one
John Deere Diesel
One hundred horses!
Big scoop on the front
that can lift and push
Twist goes the key to start
and a soft and low roar commences
down goes the clutch pedal
and into fifth gear goes a lever
give here a little ‘rabbit’
and ease out on the clutch
We’re moving!
Raise the scoop a bit
and wiggle the bucket back and forth
Wow! This is fun!
Around the farm we go
Keller and grandpa cruising,
then stopping to load her up
with a giant pile of branches
Back to the brush pile
and let the scoop unload
Back up, and here we go again!
from a little mower to a big tractor
but one of a thousand graduations….
Just maybe, at the end of life,
there is a final graduation?
We can be promoted, again,
from ‘here…earth…, to there…heaven!
Then we’ve truly arrived
for ever and evermore!
Here we get little tastes, little glories,
we celebrate with pleasure
We’re seeing through a glass darkly
but then it will be face to face!
Selah, Lin 8/2011
PS: Of course I am riding with him, and we are going slowly, carefully! Keller will be twelve in December.
Family, Parkland Style
at the annual holiday party
“Parkland is really a family”
said a long time Parkland person.
I looked around the room
seeing folks engaged with one another
smiles, laughter, concern
hand shakes and hugs
and men a few kisses on cheeks
respecting one another
enjoying being with one another
The common tasks
doing of them
does create some bonds
but there is another level
when the task involves
‘investing in people,
and things eternal’
In gifting of one’s best
doing it again and again
focused on students
who volunteer themselves
the giving to another
benefits all involved
the bond that forms
creates a family
and that’s where Parkland lives
So we know our role and play it
receiving awards along the way
not so much because we seek them
but more that others see us
gain from us
want to be like us
Holiday parties
graduations
so few times, really,
we pause to capture, share, feelings,
of respect, appreciation, being,
then hurry on into tomorrows
Selah, Lin 12/2011
What We Lost, and What We Won*
the world at war
Army’s marching
aiming, shooting
shells exploding
cities smashed
families dreams as well
What we won
can be measured
Freedom, from tyranny
cruel insanity
a madman was in charge
madmen came to help him
evil was set free
people died in ovens
in concentration camps
Jewish men in a line
pressed together, front to back
shot to see
how many could be killed
with a single bullet
American soldiers eaten
on far off Pacific Islands
Some sacrificed their lives
Some suffered wounds forever
and some came home to
The Land of the Free,
and the Home of the Brave…
to live and grow and be
in this land of opportunity
Sustained by God
we have gone on
that is what we won
Men and women working
worshipping freely
raising families in peace
not even locking doors
children playing into summer nights
friends visiting, laughing, talking
a generation, then two, then three
free to come and go
A handful now, in uniform
vigilant, on guard, protecting
Then, every family was touched
someone in uniform
everyone purposed:
Stop Adolph Hitler
Stop the Emperor’s minions
Stop the world, from going insane
What we lost was half a decade
millions of people and more
“Maybe we will not remember,
what we lost…
and what we won…”*
*Listen to Ben Bedford, writer, singer,
Lin 5/2011
Fall on the Farm
Soggy soil, luxuriously black and rich
Fields of cornstalks, nipped and low
from roaring machines that stole their fruit
All warmed by a bright fall sun
My toes are cold
is winter creeping, sneaking,
behind some dark barked tree?
The birds are flocking
geese doing check flights
bugs by the billions looking for refuge
The world is changing
as we watch
yes, winter is coming
we know it’s so
So, like the ant
we must hurry and go
to do a thousand things
before we rest hearthside
Early morning darkness
finds us rising and taking food
first light finds us outside
tending to machines
A magic moment comes
when a key is turned
and a deep throated roar begins
devour the crop
sift and sort and sift again
to pour the fruits collected
Boxes and trucks and train cars
barges and ships await
Eyes are watching
around the world
What’s the yield?
Will there be enough?
Can I afford to buy it?
Night is coming
and with it winter
when all will be quiet again
We’ll nestle down
to read and rest
and watch the cold winds blow
Another season
another year
planting, harvesting done
Selah, Lin 10/08