Half Way There (Blog #25)

It is obvious that one of these days I will need to write multiple blog posts if I am to get back on track with my plan to submit 50 blog posts from the date I started this writing campaign until July 27, 2009. Well, in any event, at least I am half way to the goal. There have been a couple of dry spells when I was unable to post to this blog. Barring any more writing droughts, I will have exactly 19 days to complete the remaining 25 blog posts to make 50 by my self-imposed deadline.

The thought occurred to me that I could take the easy road and use this forum to publish some of the poetry which I have written over the past several years. However, upon further review, I have decided that most of the poems are either a snapshot in time or written to speak to a specific person or situation. Therefore, they would be too personal to simply present in place of a thoughtfully written blog post.

In the meantime, I am reminded of the apostle Paul writing his letters to young Timothy. In the first letter, Paul urges the young pastor to "fight the good fight of faith" [1 Timothy 6:12a NIV] and to hold on to the promise of the Gospel. By the end of his second letter, Paul tells Timothy: "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith." [2 Timothy 4:7 NIV] Paul's steadfast faith is set before the young pastor and all believers as an example.

You and I may not yet be at the end of our life's journey. We may be half way there or somewhere else along the path. Taking it one day at a time used to seem like a trite expression to me. Then one day, I realized that is all any of us are able to do. None of us knows the exact number of our days. That is true whether for faithful believers and non-believers alike. Whenever we undertake a project or set a goal and set out to accomplish it, the best we can hope for is to fulfill each day to the best of our ability.

Live each day to the fullest for it may be your last. Once tomorrow comes, today is but a memory we call "yesterday" and "tomorrow" becomes today. With that in mind, I hold on to the knowledge that "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever." [Hebrews 13:8 NIV] He was there at the beginning of life and the beginning of this writing campaign. The good news is that He will be there at the end of both.

~ DB Turnmire

Pondering History

There is an old cliche which states that "history repeats itself". Of course, sometimes events in another person's life will remind us of our own past. While a similar situation will present a new perspective for us when it happens to someone else, that is our opportunity to share any kernels of wisdom we have learned through our experiences. Having said that, I decided to share another poem which was written a number of years ago...

LONGING TO BE LOVED

April 2, 2002 ~ David Turnmire

We spend much of our lives waiting, searching, dreaming, and hoping
For the right person.
Along the way, we compromise our hopes, our dreams, our values, ourselves.

We attempt to find happiness and we strive to love.
Often we overlook what we perceive to be another’s shortcomings.
So we offer our hearts, our minds, our souls, our bodies
As we commit ourselves to something different than we hoped for.

For a time, we are comfortable and outwardly at peace.
Wearied by the journey, our inner voice is only a whisper
And easily ignored.

Then, one day, it happens…a voice, a face, a glance, a thought.
The stirring begins and the cries of our inner voice grow louder.
A conflict within us reminds us
Of our hopes, our dreams, our values, ourselves.

From day to day, our personal struggle weighs on our hearts and our minds.
There is no doubt our love is true.
Yet, that still, small voice pleads to be heard.

Perhaps there is no answer to this life’s dilemma
But what do we do when our hearts would be torn apart.
One thing can be certain…
A missed opportunity to love is a lost opportunity to love.

Therefore, this question remains:
“Is it better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all?”

___________________

For those who have been through the pain of being in a serious relationship that has ended, somewhere along the line someone will tell you that "it is better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all". In many instances, that is true. However, I would contend that such a statement is not always true. There have been times in my own life when I did not feel that at all. Fortunately, time does have a way of healing old wounds and changing one's perspective. Each one of us will have to answer the question for ourselves. "Is it better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all?

___

~ DB Turnmire

A Terrific Tuesday to Tell Tales

Edgar Allen Poe is undoubtedly my favorite poet. Poe's use of alliteration in poems like "The Raven" demonstrates incredible use of the English language to captivate the reader's or listener's attention. Poe is perhaps the premier poet with a penchant for penetrating poetry with perfect pitch. No one will probably understand the previous sentence and that will be fine with me. Soon, the point will be plain for everyone to see.

This morning, I arose in a mood to speak and write alliteratively. After sending some simple sentences to a couple of former co-workers and two family members, I decided that it would be perfect to write today's blog using alliterative techniques. Before I began to blog, basking in beams of brightness beyond, I took time out to break bread blissfully.

Definitely, if we persisted on speaking and writing constantly using alliterations, we might grow weary of trying to be witty. However, it cannot be said that striving for a more colorful use language would necessarily be a bad thing to work toward. After all, it sometimes occurs to me that some individuals whom I encounter do not have a good grasp of language and grammar.

As we advance further in the technological age, human interaction becomes less frequent. Daily, we become more and more comfortable with techno speak - text messages, instant messages, Internet postings, etc. As a result, many find themselves less comfortable with carrying on conversations between themselves and another person. Individuals now work at home performing online tasks and have the potential of going for days without actually speaking to another human being.

Those who still allow themselves the pleasure of reading old-fashioned books have a great opportunity still afforded to all but not taken advantage of as once before. Within books of history, romance, fiction, poetry and biography (to name a few), the world of creative language used in unveiled. Librarians and literarians, like Lawrence Ferlinghetti*, recognize themselves as advocates for literacy. Groups like these are longing to liberate the masses from the literal barbarians who seem to be lurking at the gates.

*[Read more about Lawrence Felinghetti who received National Book Awards' Literarian Award for outstanding service to the literary community on November 16, 2005 @ http://citylightsfoundation.org/beat/LF/CLLFliterarians.html.]