Does the World Owe You Anything?

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Don’t Worry

Contentment

Should life be all about happiness
Achieving that bubble of emotion
That rides the high waves of excitement
Or more so about countered contentment
Bobbing about on the ripples
Negotiating the ups and downs
With calm and measured serenity
You tell me?

Photo by Ben Dellow (not to be reproduced without permission, 2017)

Lord Listen!

I believe I missed the email
That came straight from the Lord
Saying “Reply with hallelujahs
To confirm that you’re on board
To tick terms and conditions
And to say that indeed you
Feel that your faith is strong and sure
And eternally true”

But instead I didn’t answer
And for seven long years
He sent a plague of ailments
And a host of all my fears
Called poverty and homelessness
Divorce and hard up times
Sickness, death and famine
And other types of grime

And so I said, “Lord listen!
I’ve really had enough
Of all the bad you’ve dumped on me
The really rotten stuff
You’ve landed on my doorstep
For you’ve treated me badly
And what I just don’t get now
Is how you say that you love me”

“So, can you be more gentler
Show your hand of kindness please
Less sending all the bugs and such
Stop being such a tease
Let me know that what you say you are
Is genuinely right
For from my corner it appears
You’re really not in sight!”

To which He smiled and nodded
Said “Do you just not see
That in this time of trouble
You’ve grown through adversity
You’ve learnt about resilience
You’ve paved a way and more
For the wounds and scars have left you so
Much better off for sure!”

“For when all’s said and all is done
And you really, truly see
Less any faith or any god
You have just innately
A tool kit that you can draw on
Whenever you’re willing
For you are blessed with all you need
To get through anything!”

And the moral of this story
Whether times be good or bad
Is focus on your strengths for sure
Not on the latest fad
And see that wealth and riches
Don’t come from banks or gold
But are harboured in your heart and mind
And are always yours to hold!

Make Every Day Count

Make every day count
Let there be no regret
Endeavour a purpose
And never forget
That the clock ticks through life
It never will stop
Til your last breath is taken
And your legacy drops
Into the sea of the past
To be judged good or bad
Whether a life made a difference
Or was wasted – so sad
But let there be more
That each moment bring joy
Inspiration and wonder
like a child with new toy
To question; to challenge
To relax; to imbue
Every day; every minute;
Every second hold true

Spread a Little Happiness

Impinge another’s happiness
And you will sadly find
That your contentment is withheld
Dooming your state of mind

Disempower another
And stop them in their tracks
Then similarly your own way will
Be blocked and held right back

Yet champion each other’s cause
Act less self centeredly
To find when it’s about the us
It enhances the me

So blow in winds of compassion
Rain drops of kindness too
Shine beams of care and hope and love
To make the happy you

Flow

When the world offers no mercy
Let poetry stand out
Stand out like an island of sanity
Midst the harsh seas of chaos
Breathing order
To bring about peace
To bring about joy
To bring about flow

This poem has been adapted from Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi’s book “Flow”.  It’s fab – a really inspirational read – if anyone wants to know more about Optimal Experience

What is Happiness (Haikus)

Happiness is not
Found in material wealth
But gold deep within

Neither is it sought
From beyond the window pane
But in the mirror

It’s not loud and brash
But abides in the still voice
Of each beating heart

Happiness is then
Contentment with self above
All other pleasure

Wish Upon A Star

Wish upon a star
Say a little prayer
Look for hope and happiness
With loving kindness there

And when you catch that star dust
Be careful to hold tight
To radiate the joy it holds
And shine so very bright

Cloud Nine

Cloud nine – supreme and happy place
Idyllic some may say
With head in clouds in cuckoo land
Revelling in blissful day

Yet vying to beat number nine
Another tries to be
The cloud that get the vote; the stamp
The title of Happy

For consider for a short while
The matter of cloud seven
Putting its case forward to state
He’s in part seventh heaven

A cloud that is just so sublime
A cloud that is so great
He swears that hands down he beats nine
For best euphoric state!

Yet aside either of these clouds
Jostling to be so bright
I’d rather have blue skies without
A single cloud in sight