Feign Lair

The life I lead is a zoo
Its fences provide comfort and security
They separate me and you
Creating a false sense of obscurity

Look on from afar
Approach if you dare
If you could see the scar
Perhaps you’d beware

Stand at the fence and look in
Watch as I eat, work, and play
Think you know what goes on within
But really, I’m just on display

The attention doesn’t bother me at all
In fact, I might even have liked it
As I release my mating call
You seem intrigued having sighted it

From your side of the fence, you stare
And then in you come as if unaware
That I’d make you past tense, beware
My bite is more piercing than my glare

You pranced and played in my abode
You ate my food and drank my water
Tried to reap from what I had sowed
Until I pounced and did slaughter

Fair Ride

Life isn’t fair
It’s just a fair
Amidst long lines
And neon signs
With expensive indulgences
And relentless temptresses
Up ladders, down slides
Some not-as-fun rides

Let me off this rollercoaster please
Allow me to: Soar with ease,
Free my wings, Release my soul
See my mind and body as whole,
Chase the ups, and chase away the downs,
Seek the humor, and fear not the clowns,
Race the hare, and give the tortoise wheels,
Remove the flats, and flaunt the highest heels

Wear Shoes?

Do you wear prayers like shoes? Put em on each morn?
Wear them at all times, sunrise, sundown, and also at dawn?
If they be sneakers, I’m ready to run the mile by your side
If they be loafers, let’s walk together with dignified stride
If they be boots, I’m ready to climb treacherous terrain with you
If they be ballroom, let’s dance through life as if every step we knew
If they be steel-tipped, I’m ready to march armed with the power of His name
If they be slippers, let’s lounge and dream as if our thoughts were one in the same

Reflections on the Current Wish List

Wish List
Family – Does it include Husband / House / More Children?
Education – Does it include Masters / PHD or Certifications?
Areas of Study – Does it include International Trade Policy / Economics / Supply Chain Management?
Career – Does it include executive track or entrepreneurial endeavors?
Community Service – Does it include children/junior youth/youth programs – depend on Jamilah’s age?
Faith – Does it include devotions, administration (feasts/conventions), institute process?
Language – Does it include addition of Arabic, Chinese, Farsi, French?
Music – Does it include proficiency in an instrument or voice?
Publication – Does it include lyrics, poetry, children’s book, business/trade/management articles?
Fitness – Does it include competing in power lifting, triathlon, soccer team?

Patience

It comes, it goes
It ebbs and flows
Without it, anxiety is sure to build
With it, one is seemingly strong willed
It encourages gratitude
And strengthens aptitude
Removing the burden of pressure
Patience makes the environment fresher

Love

Deepest fear is to love, Deepest wish is to be loved
Without giving love, One cannot receive love
Why does love seem unto a weakness, When it is one of the strongest uniting forces?
Love takes various forms, and is displayed in various ways
Love is rooted in the same spirit that paved the path of service we walk
It is reflection and action, it is beginning steps and end reaction
Love connects souls in the realm on high, The substance that bonds the you and the I


I pray to the lord above, and imagine it's delivery via dove
I dream as if tomorrow was today, and have faith those dreams I'll see some day
I escape to my thoughts and imagination
The safest place to store my dreams and look on with fascination

Running the Mile

Started with a glance, then a stare, followed by a set of many reps
You began to walk towards me with slow cautious steps

You took a chance, the first step made, you inspired me to run a mile
Envisioning the end, cast out an embrace and smile

Behind each frown, behind each grin, a world of possibility lies
Oh what I’d give to make all your lows turn into highs

A friend, a supporter, a motivator, a comforter to me
To your kids a great father you continue to be

I imagine running together through fields of both flowers and thorns
Embracing that which makes us wear both halos and horns

As creative as dreams can be, could they turn into reality…
Manifesting our collective creativity?

Show Some Respect

Dear eyes that do see
Please show some respect

The curve of the lips
The swish of the hips
The bounce of the strut
The filled-up rear hut

Dear minds that perceive
Please show some respect

The temple surrounding the soul
The representation of the whole
The set of tools used each day
The feet to walk and voice to pray

Dear souls that retrieve
Please show some respect

The dignity displayed with each stride
The smile expressing both joy and pride
The virtues that lie (even if hidden) within
The beauty bestowed from closest of kin

Dear you I believe
Please show some respect

Ms. Florence Avis

One ponders when this blessed soul will take flight
Her fragile temple caged in this mortal world
The blessed nightingale longs to soar
To let her divine wings spread and unfurl

Day and night she continues to fulfill her duty
When will her work on this earthly plane be deemed complete
A saint, an angel, a servant of the realm on high
No correct title to correspond with service so replete

Her years of service will never go unnoticed
She will always be an inspiration and will continue to guide us
Her ceaseless support matched with her mighty prayers
We are assured she will forever and always be with us

With joy so deep, we weep and wish her farewell
Sadness or grief is the definition this feeling some have described
We will not allow misery to paralyze us, much work to be done
We will carry out the divine message that has been prescribed

She wants nothing more than each soul to be taught
Each divine battle to be fought,
Each children’s class to be carried out
Feasts, devotionals, deepenings, firesides, study circles for all of us to be about

Ms. Florence Avis, We love you dearly
We are all so blessed to have walked with thee
Please hold our hands along the way
And we will try our best to not be in dismay

“O SON OF JUSTICE!
Whither can a lover go but to the land of his beloved? and what seeker findeth rest away from his heart's desire? To the true lover reunion is life, and separation is death. His breast is void of patience and his heart hath no peace. A myriad lives he would forsake to hasten to the abode of his beloved.” (Baha'u'llah, The Persian Hidden Words)

Mission

The dawn has broken
The race has begun
Come one, come all, the time is now
Today we decipher the why and how

We all heard the calling
Saw with our eyes, the clear signs
Cannot be sure what the future brings
But will surely hear the victory bell as it rings

The troops have gathered
From far and wide
Marching down the dusty trail
Gathering the injured and frail

In towns and villages
In cities, every home
Prayers answered, the spirit did anchor
Conquering prejudice, malice, and rancor

The children set the foundation
The junior youth serve mankind
The youth rally the troops, take hold of the mission, and fulfill their duty
The adults try to keep up, take in the progress and vision, in all of its beauty

Her Eyes

Her eyes

They guide her, they protect her

They see the past as they look into the future

They see the last as they proceed with the next

They warn lest you try to mute her

Her eyes

They follow, they lead

They represent progressive in old fashion

They travel through time, they wander the mind

They express emotion with passion

Her eyes

They tell tales of the the seen and unseen

They curtail every temptation that attempts to distract

They seek wisdom, discern truth, assert with certainty

They make each contact seem unto a firm contract

O God, Guide Me -- Remix of Prayer by 'Abdu'l-Bahá

O God

Each morning as we pray,

Guide me

Hoping for the best day

Protect me

We beseech thee for protection

Illumine the lamp of my heart

Your light reflects with perfection

And make me a brilliant star

We pray your light shines through us

Thou art the Mighty

Forever you are with us

And the Powerful

Looking at you

'Abdu'l-Bahá

Following you.

Bright or Blue?

Each morn, each eve, reflection
The mind resurrecting perception
Body rejuvenated, Soul refreshed
Mind desires to achieve His every behest

Time a continuous spectrum
Of thought, action, hesitant ‘um’
Reflection. Seeking out light
Can you see truth without sight?

Clarity brought to vision
A necessary provision
The lens that you look through
Makes your world bright or blue?

Swing With Ease

It is not with anger that I write
It is with passion I provide my insight
It is not my smile that seduces you
It is the wisdom of my mind that reduces you
Down to your knees, begging me please
To swing with you amidst the trees

A metaphor for how we move
An image of how we groove
In this life we swing together
Even in the most extreme of weather
A midnight storm, A midday breeze
Our rays emit the sunshine with ease

Challenge

You challenge me to become
Radiant with true wisdom

You challenge me to see
With lens filtered by realistic positivity

You challenge me to embrace change
By which my life I constantly rearrange

You challenge me to strive with each stride
I become more alive and I hold on for the ride

You challenge me to have faith and strength
Looking back, with each tread, I achieved greater length

You challenge me to look back as I move onward
Steady march with a glance behind, my whole life pondered

You challenge me to deliberate only the meaningful
To seek truth and accomplish the unbelievable

Sleepless Conundrum

Rhythm… tip-tap, then hum
The words spin into a conundrum
As I try my best to express
My every behest hidden by the most fabulous dress

Alas, I cannot sleep
It is as though I can only hear your heart’s weep
The sound of it’s beat
As if running in a sweltering mid-day heat

Drip drop of the tears onto your soul
Envision of a big gaping hole
Oh how my ears hear it all
Each tear as each one does slowly fall

I lay here, mind alert and aware
I stay here, as if to flirt and to stare
Weary to take even one little stride
Knowing full well I'd much rather run towards than hide

Attraction, an understatement, I’m sure
Our hearts and mind are no less than pure
Intoxication, as innocent
As a sip of juice that one may say did one day ferment

The words flow as if you were right here
Listening intently with the left and the right ear
Meaningful to me, but meaningless you see
Too cowardly to admit that this was written to thee!

Reflect…ion

Reflect…ion

The light to never shun

The truth to embrace

The steps to retrace

Pave the way and follow

With mind so open, it’s hollow

With direction, not blind

Seeking truth, shall find

Certain of what has been

Sure much has yet to be seen

And heard, Explored

Climbed and soared

Treasures unveiled

Wisdom in turn hailed

A sense of clarity

Deemed to be reality

When did?

When did strength become a weakness?
When did important become irrrelevant?
When did independent become dependable?
When did comfort become an impediment?

When did having everything
Become having nothing at all?
When did rising
Become unto a triumphant fall?

When the soul parted ways with the mind
And the body was left in a bind
When the contradiction between thought and action
Became a paralyzing distraction

Taiwanese in DongGuan

round table a few feet from the ground,
little plastic red stools surround,

good company and wild dogs amidst,
view of o'er the mountain rain and mist,

...chopsticks, tea, and small spoon
taiwanese meal under the moon

a variety of dishes including soup with chicken feet
to close the day of much humidity and heat

Thank You.

Someone recently told me...

"You're amazing...don't think for a second you are single because of something in you."

I needed to hear it.

Ya Baha! Thank the Lord for loving friends to put me in check and provide perspective. Thank you!

Time

Time flies by
Who would have known
Wink of mine eye
Flowers grew, seeds sewn

Grandmother just turned 70
Daughter about to be 3
Mother doesn't look a day over 40
Me, I'm comfortably 23

Take care, stay strong
Dream big, think long
Into the future, you may or may not see
It is quite simply, one big mystery.

Together We Walk

Our souls, wedded to Joy
Our minds, united in one common Ploy
Our hearts, bound to Thy Cause
Walking with Haste, No time to Pause.

Standing tall, Facing forward,
With confidence, Marching onward
With each stride, We go strong
With each mile, We go long.

By day, we walk our separate ways
By night, the separation becomes a haze
To be near would be far too easy
Distance, a welcome challenge, believe me.

Adventure, to say the least
Assured, we will conquer our every feat
As we climb, we carry with us mounting hope
Will we stop? Even for a moment? Nope!

Take Heed and Proceed

At the hour of dawn, I awake from my rest
And turn to listen to your every behest
Twas you that enlightened my dreams
Twas me that read between the seams
An idea and a thought stirred
The divine call rang out to be heard
I took my first step spinning reflection into action
I reached out my hand and insisted in your interaction
You asked me to take heed and in the sweetest of tone
You assured me to proceed and that I'd never be alone

Bird

Like a bird... She couldn't have said it better

Not a care and not a fetter

With wings spread far and wide

A swoop, a soar, a glide

Connecting souls, connecting tales

In glory, he rarely ever fails

Selfless devotion,

Momentum and motion

Drives the bird to flight

Soaring at great height

Will continue... (that's all for now folks!)