The plant that I water wilted so slightly,
Though rooted to stones in the pot where it sits.
Occasionally I worry I’ll water too much,
Then starve the leaves by not sparing enough.
With countenance fallen, I see my misdeed,
As leaves sag with want of voice and touch.
Soil that is rich, but dry and parched,
Has not the means to yield its full strength.
Oft it is I, and not my plant, that wilts,
Yearning for water and light for my stalks.
As my heart turns to watering, my eyes soon follow,
Full of gratitude for those who water my ground.
Sturdier the plant, and more tender the leaves
That learn to depend on a caring source.
With light from above and water in my hand
Gently I’ll watch over those that I care for.
http://saltypockets.blogspot.com/
Showing posts with label Poetry. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Poetry. Show all posts
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Voices
Mindswept with noise and distraction,
Ubiquitous sounds that permeate and tangle my thoughts,
I savor the unique familiarity that calls my name
With resonant feeling,
Opening doors to things I once felt.
Today, I retrieve and gather
The seeming remnants of purpose that span forever,
Spoken with a soft and gentle voice,
A constant presence,
To find answers of hope and clarity.
Intently I listen to calming words,
Attempting to cut through the ever present raucous
That shrouds my understanding
In order to see
Things as they really are.
There is elegant beauty about the voice
Contrasting the sharp emptiness of what I know not
With understanding that lightly distills
On heart and soul,
Leaving lasting impressions.
Whether the voice of a dear friend, servant or Master,
I cherish the conversations that repeat greater meanings
Each in like pattern of that most familiar,
Still and small,
Voices within a voice.
http://saltypockets.blogspot.com/
Ubiquitous sounds that permeate and tangle my thoughts,
I savor the unique familiarity that calls my name
With resonant feeling,
Opening doors to things I once felt.
Today, I retrieve and gather
The seeming remnants of purpose that span forever,
Spoken with a soft and gentle voice,
A constant presence,
To find answers of hope and clarity.
Intently I listen to calming words,
Attempting to cut through the ever present raucous
That shrouds my understanding
In order to see
Things as they really are.
There is elegant beauty about the voice
Contrasting the sharp emptiness of what I know not
With understanding that lightly distills
On heart and soul,
Leaving lasting impressions.
Whether the voice of a dear friend, servant or Master,
I cherish the conversations that repeat greater meanings
Each in like pattern of that most familiar,
Still and small,
Voices within a voice.
http://saltypockets.blogspot.com/
Sunday, September 5, 2010
Trials Felt
How appears the apparition, that seemingly passes by,
To others who look and cannot see the reasons why I cry?
Its verity feels like bedrock, a forever burden borne,
With weight’s encumbrance given to bear alone and lorn.
In the middle of my own, I see another’s fear,
But not the force that’s hidden, causing him to veer.
I watch as burden buries heart, not knowing how long he’ll wait,
Or just how much the toll exacts to pass through sorrow’s gate.
Often worse are trials which, for others, go unseen,
For few will pause to help and answer what they mean.
I wish to see differently when the trial is not my own.
Perhaps I, too, can share his burden so he is not alone.
If I look past apparent, and the apparition that is bleak,
I hope to find more knowledge and gain the peace I seek.
Whether trial by fire or endless dark, it’s time I wait upon,
To learn the lessons that I need, and then my trials are gone.
Trials give us focus, when there’s nothing else to see,
Until we look right through them to what we’re meant to be.
To others who look and cannot see the reasons why I cry?
Its verity feels like bedrock, a forever burden borne,
With weight’s encumbrance given to bear alone and lorn.
In the middle of my own, I see another’s fear,
But not the force that’s hidden, causing him to veer.
I watch as burden buries heart, not knowing how long he’ll wait,
Or just how much the toll exacts to pass through sorrow’s gate.
Often worse are trials which, for others, go unseen,
For few will pause to help and answer what they mean.
I wish to see differently when the trial is not my own.
Perhaps I, too, can share his burden so he is not alone.
If I look past apparent, and the apparition that is bleak,
I hope to find more knowledge and gain the peace I seek.
Whether trial by fire or endless dark, it’s time I wait upon,
To learn the lessons that I need, and then my trials are gone.
Trials give us focus, when there’s nothing else to see,
Until we look right through them to what we’re meant to be.
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Wanting
Empty.
My soul felt void.
Stripped of water and bread to sustain,
I missed my well and grain –
A source of energy that powers the heart
To action,
To feel and breathe again.
Yearning,
I looked for fuel –
For strength that carries, inspires, and lifts,
So highly valued among my gifts.
I sought reprieve to calm my wants
As time,
I hoped, my thoughts would sift.
Desire points me.
Passions drive me.
My appetites, constant, uphold my need,
Near amounts that closely border greed.
Wondering why I want so much
I pause,
Then let my will concede.
Trying,
I ask in faith,
And not to consume upon my lust,
But to still the raging tempest thrust.
My heart I turn to Him who hears,
…and wait.
His will is always just.
Oh,
How my soul hungers
To learn control and understand
How to receive from the Master’s hand.
I’ll look to Him to fuel my soul,
And then, one day,
Accept the perfect things He’s planned.
http://saltypockets.blogspot.com/
My soul felt void.
Stripped of water and bread to sustain,
I missed my well and grain –
A source of energy that powers the heart
To action,
To feel and breathe again.
Yearning,
I looked for fuel –
For strength that carries, inspires, and lifts,
So highly valued among my gifts.
I sought reprieve to calm my wants
As time,
I hoped, my thoughts would sift.
Desire points me.
Passions drive me.
My appetites, constant, uphold my need,
Near amounts that closely border greed.
Wondering why I want so much
I pause,
Then let my will concede.
Trying,
I ask in faith,
And not to consume upon my lust,
But to still the raging tempest thrust.
My heart I turn to Him who hears,
…and wait.
His will is always just.
Oh,
How my soul hungers
To learn control and understand
How to receive from the Master’s hand.
I’ll look to Him to fuel my soul,
And then, one day,
Accept the perfect things He’s planned.
http://saltypockets.blogspot.com/
Sunday, July 4, 2010
More
The heart,
Honest, and open, and gratitude driven,
Yearns for more and more –
To give, to share, to live
And become.
The taste of freedom
Exquisitely flavored, ceaselessly stirs.
It moves, arouses, and inspires,
Compelling many acts
To greater distance.
Each pass of freedom plunges the heart
Deeper in devotion, richer in loyalty
And stronger in love,
With a never ending search
For more.
Abraham sought to be, as others,
A greater follower of righteousness.
He searched and obtained
Both door and key
To his exaltation.
The pathway to more, the door and the key,
Are tied as with a ribbon,
Inseparably connecting
Our will with God’s
And the supernal powers of heaven.
And yet, all this is tied to more.
Freedom,
Judiciously granted, one choice at a time,
Is the power to act
Without feeling acted upon.
This is my choosing.
Sin is bondage,
And temptation is testing.
Each time I yield up my sins,
My freedom is increased
With more.
So here I spread my fears and my doubts,
My many bondages I cling to.
I extract all the parasitical things
I’ve acquired in life
And I offer.
Both hoping and waiting,
I follow the path of Abraham
Towards things that are greater.
As he was tried, I’ll take up my test.
I’ll leave my spread behind.
And yet, all this is tied to more.
God has promised to give
All that He has
To those who believe that he will -
More holiness given, increasingly able,
And only my sins to lose.
Trusting, I cast from my heart
All that God requires
With the harmful removed,
And place made ready,
He returns to me my desires.
God spoke to Abraham,
Of sand in the ocean, and stars in the heaven.
Count them, He said. All will be given.
The faithful who wait will yet receive,
In His due time.
Abraham 1:2
D&C 101:4-5
Genesis 22:17
http://saltypockets.blogspot.com/
Honest, and open, and gratitude driven,
Yearns for more and more –
To give, to share, to live
And become.
The taste of freedom
Exquisitely flavored, ceaselessly stirs.
It moves, arouses, and inspires,
Compelling many acts
To greater distance.
Each pass of freedom plunges the heart
Deeper in devotion, richer in loyalty
And stronger in love,
With a never ending search
For more.
Abraham sought to be, as others,
A greater follower of righteousness.
He searched and obtained
Both door and key
To his exaltation.
The pathway to more, the door and the key,
Are tied as with a ribbon,
Inseparably connecting
Our will with God’s
And the supernal powers of heaven.
And yet, all this is tied to more.
Freedom,
Judiciously granted, one choice at a time,
Is the power to act
Without feeling acted upon.
This is my choosing.
Sin is bondage,
And temptation is testing.
Each time I yield up my sins,
My freedom is increased
With more.
So here I spread my fears and my doubts,
My many bondages I cling to.
I extract all the parasitical things
I’ve acquired in life
And I offer.
Both hoping and waiting,
I follow the path of Abraham
Towards things that are greater.
As he was tried, I’ll take up my test.
I’ll leave my spread behind.
And yet, all this is tied to more.
God has promised to give
All that He has
To those who believe that he will -
More holiness given, increasingly able,
And only my sins to lose.
Trusting, I cast from my heart
All that God requires
With the harmful removed,
And place made ready,
He returns to me my desires.
God spoke to Abraham,
Of sand in the ocean, and stars in the heaven.
Count them, He said. All will be given.
The faithful who wait will yet receive,
In His due time.
Abraham 1:2
D&C 101:4-5
Genesis 22:17
http://saltypockets.blogspot.com/
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Death is a Doorway
Standing
At the face of the reposed stone
Inscripted with names,
I rest
And remember
The mother I’ve never met.
I long
And yearn some more
For greeting phrases that await my arrival
In the next place,
A passage I have not yet read.
Waiting,
I reflect on my faithful friend
Who just now left,
So suddenly,
Passing through a door
In the ground –
A door admitting entrance
More readily
Than granting one return passage.
His place is further,
Another part in the book,
The next grand adventure.
Death,
A doorway not to be feared,
With plot largely unknown,
Is a path
From life to life
Between chapters of experience.
One school is finished,
Another begins,
But the life that passes through,
A common thread,
Is still the same,
Only more.
Death is merely a passage
To be written.
Mostly unseen,
One piece of my heart died,
Entering
The consuming furnace of unfamiliar trial
And test
As words I penned
Were etched in my heart by choice.
Repeatedly
My heart emerged again
And again,
Largely the same and unharmed.
Lesser parts purged,
The better made clearer.
The last time I passed away,
In the first place,
Or that which came before,
I left
Those who were familiar
And loved me.
In keeping my first estate,
I gave it up
And was given another.
Even now, I remember nothing
About that death.
Upon my leaving,
I was affectionately received
By family.
Did I lose or did I gain?
Which did it seem at first,
In that place?
Did I know
The expanse of loss
Makes room for more given?
Did I see
Losing the wrong is always better
And losing good
Temporary?
Did I know I would know
Someday?
Now I consider
The arrival of some future point
When my time here
Becomes
A passage in a book.
Will I fear that experience,
New and unfamiliar,
As though it is the first time?
Or will I be ready to turn another page
Just like the last?
If ye are prepared, ye shall not fear.
Each time I die,
And offer one more part
That clings for existence,
The pattern of life is reread.
As long as I am willing,
The pathway seems to lead my heart and mind
Further up and further in.
If I remember, and feel,
I do not fear.
Verily,
It is written.
Books are inscripted,
Capturing the things we forget,
The memories
That escape our minds,
And the lessons
We thought we knew.
Death,
Is a doorway
Not to be feared,
But respected
With honest tears
In hope of the things we know
To wash away our fears.
“To die will be an awfully big adventure.” James M. Barrie, Peter Pan.
“One school is finished, and the time has come for another to begin.” Richard Bach, Jonathan Livingston Seagull.
“If ye are prepared, ye shall not fear.” (Doctrine & Covenants 38:30)
“Come further up, come further in.” C. S. Lewis, The Last Battle.
http://saltypockets.blogspot.com/
At the face of the reposed stone
Inscripted with names,
I rest
And remember
The mother I’ve never met.
I long
And yearn some more
For greeting phrases that await my arrival
In the next place,
A passage I have not yet read.
Waiting,
I reflect on my faithful friend
Who just now left,
So suddenly,
Passing through a door
In the ground –
A door admitting entrance
More readily
Than granting one return passage.
His place is further,
Another part in the book,
The next grand adventure.
Death,
A doorway not to be feared,
With plot largely unknown,
Is a path
From life to life
Between chapters of experience.
One school is finished,
Another begins,
But the life that passes through,
A common thread,
Is still the same,
Only more.
Death is merely a passage
To be written.
Mostly unseen,
One piece of my heart died,
Entering
The consuming furnace of unfamiliar trial
And test
As words I penned
Were etched in my heart by choice.
Repeatedly
My heart emerged again
And again,
Largely the same and unharmed.
Lesser parts purged,
The better made clearer.
The last time I passed away,
In the first place,
Or that which came before,
I left
Those who were familiar
And loved me.
In keeping my first estate,
I gave it up
And was given another.
Even now, I remember nothing
About that death.
Upon my leaving,
I was affectionately received
By family.
Did I lose or did I gain?
Which did it seem at first,
In that place?
Did I know
The expanse of loss
Makes room for more given?
Did I see
Losing the wrong is always better
And losing good
Temporary?
Did I know I would know
Someday?
Now I consider
The arrival of some future point
When my time here
Becomes
A passage in a book.
Will I fear that experience,
New and unfamiliar,
As though it is the first time?
Or will I be ready to turn another page
Just like the last?
If ye are prepared, ye shall not fear.
Each time I die,
And offer one more part
That clings for existence,
The pattern of life is reread.
As long as I am willing,
The pathway seems to lead my heart and mind
Further up and further in.
If I remember, and feel,
I do not fear.
Verily,
It is written.
Books are inscripted,
Capturing the things we forget,
The memories
That escape our minds,
And the lessons
We thought we knew.
Death,
Is a doorway
Not to be feared,
But respected
With honest tears
In hope of the things we know
To wash away our fears.
“To die will be an awfully big adventure.” James M. Barrie, Peter Pan.
“One school is finished, and the time has come for another to begin.” Richard Bach, Jonathan Livingston Seagull.
“If ye are prepared, ye shall not fear.” (Doctrine & Covenants 38:30)
“Come further up, come further in.” C. S. Lewis, The Last Battle.
http://saltypockets.blogspot.com/
Sunday, May 16, 2010
Keeping the Garden
Daily I walk
Through elder trees and newer foliage
On familiar paths that change.
Canopies of leaves extend and reach
To cover the growth that sometimes frightens.
The orchard’s fullest depth holds a mystery.
Its many rooms remain a wonder.
The Garden I keep for another
Has fruit both wild and tame.
Each tree bears fruit in its own season,
Save two.
That place in the Garden is different,
And the two trees unique.
Since its planting,
The first never ceases to furnish fruit.
It never stops bearing,
Not for a moment.
The tree has one eternal round
Of giving two gifts –
Fruit which is ripe, and that which is rotten.
Upon first picking,
The tree’s forbidden flavor
Became common knowledge.
The delicious fruit has been greatly desired
By all who have tasted
For many seasons since.
At first harvest,
The second likewise experienced a change.
In place of always providing
This tree is continually ripening.
Closer and closer, the fruit, white and pure,
Nigh to ready,
Seems just out of reach.
Whether by knowledge,
Passed on in story,
Or due to lack of availability,
The fruit of the tree,
So full of life,
Is declared most desirable above all.
Between the two trees
An empty spot lingered;
Ground most fertile, and peculiar, perhaps.
If these others should bear
So very uniquely,
I wondered,
What could happen, if only by chance,
That I experiment with a third?
Desire worked in me.
My thoughts made room for hope.
Carefully placed, I set a small seed,
Which I thought
to be mustard.
Presumption took hold.
I qualmed and I doubted.
This Garden, not mine, was mine but to tend.
Still I questioned
If my small effort, insignificant at best,
Could possibly anger the one for whom
This Garden I kept.
With desire to equal both neighboring trees,
I settled, and decided
To watch and to wait.
I nourished, and tended, and kept.
And then I was angered.
What I saw was not what I thought.
Two trees stood,
Each flanking my spot.
They were majestic and strong,
Ideal for the ground
So fertile and willing.
But mine,
Twisted and gnarled, not slender or strait,
Had come from the dust,
Much smaller, and weaker.
I was less hopeful.
Perhaps it wasn’t the Garden soil after all.
The tree seemed disappointing,
My efforts vain.
Were it not for the notice
I gave to the leaves,
Which seemed to resemble the very first tree,
I should not have discovered
The fruit, a single olive,
Matching in whiteness and brilliance
The color of the ever ripening fruit.
There between trees, a third form was growing,
Finding strength from the soil
And the other two trees.
It was becoming and resembled
Another mount, another garden,
Covered in trees.
http://saltypockets.blogspot.com/
Through elder trees and newer foliage
On familiar paths that change.
Canopies of leaves extend and reach
To cover the growth that sometimes frightens.
The orchard’s fullest depth holds a mystery.
Its many rooms remain a wonder.
The Garden I keep for another
Has fruit both wild and tame.
Each tree bears fruit in its own season,
Save two.
That place in the Garden is different,
And the two trees unique.
Since its planting,
The first never ceases to furnish fruit.
It never stops bearing,
Not for a moment.
The tree has one eternal round
Of giving two gifts –
Fruit which is ripe, and that which is rotten.
Upon first picking,
The tree’s forbidden flavor
Became common knowledge.
The delicious fruit has been greatly desired
By all who have tasted
For many seasons since.
At first harvest,
The second likewise experienced a change.
In place of always providing
This tree is continually ripening.
Closer and closer, the fruit, white and pure,
Nigh to ready,
Seems just out of reach.
Whether by knowledge,
Passed on in story,
Or due to lack of availability,
The fruit of the tree,
So full of life,
Is declared most desirable above all.
Between the two trees
An empty spot lingered;
Ground most fertile, and peculiar, perhaps.
If these others should bear
So very uniquely,
I wondered,
What could happen, if only by chance,
That I experiment with a third?
Desire worked in me.
My thoughts made room for hope.
Carefully placed, I set a small seed,
Which I thought
to be mustard.
Presumption took hold.
I qualmed and I doubted.
This Garden, not mine, was mine but to tend.
Still I questioned
If my small effort, insignificant at best,
Could possibly anger the one for whom
This Garden I kept.
With desire to equal both neighboring trees,
I settled, and decided
To watch and to wait.
I nourished, and tended, and kept.
And then I was angered.
What I saw was not what I thought.
Two trees stood,
Each flanking my spot.
They were majestic and strong,
Ideal for the ground
So fertile and willing.
But mine,
Twisted and gnarled, not slender or strait,
Had come from the dust,
Much smaller, and weaker.
I was less hopeful.
Perhaps it wasn’t the Garden soil after all.
The tree seemed disappointing,
My efforts vain.
Were it not for the notice
I gave to the leaves,
Which seemed to resemble the very first tree,
I should not have discovered
The fruit, a single olive,
Matching in whiteness and brilliance
The color of the ever ripening fruit.
There between trees, a third form was growing,
Finding strength from the soil
And the other two trees.
It was becoming and resembled
Another mount, another garden,
Covered in trees.
http://saltypockets.blogspot.com/
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Among the Clouds
Hail, precipice of solid rock!
From ground to clouds the sky you’ve climbed,
While lesser things the earth will walk,
In Babel’s shadow left to talk.
Adorned with clouds and hid from sight
Your tops are veiled with densest fog.
And yet, I’d face uncertain fright
If I but once could reach your height.
Among my fears, which is my test?
The mountain tall or clouded thought?
From which will I first seek some rest
When strength is gone and doubt expressed?
Dear Brother, you have gone before
With sixteen stones for glowing light.
I ask again, please, pray once more
That I, too, might have knowledge sure.
Consider mountain, rock, and stone,
With clouds and fog that veil the Light.
The obstacle that hides the throne
Is also that which makes Him known.
Just as the Lord without disguise
Stretched forth his hand and touched the stones,
The veil was taken from your eyes
And doubt gave way to parted skies.
When few with faith are thus endowed
Shall I with hope appraise my own
By mountains climbed, which veils enshroud,
Or my comfort among the clouds?
Hail, Brother! Thou that stands
Upon Mount Shelem, nigh with God,
With eighteen stones now in thy hands
To light the way to distant lands.
And so it is when you return,
You bring the height of mountains back
Deep in your heart where hope will yearn,
Then I with faith will start to learn.
http://saltypockets.blogspot.com/
From ground to clouds the sky you’ve climbed,
While lesser things the earth will walk,
In Babel’s shadow left to talk.
Adorned with clouds and hid from sight
Your tops are veiled with densest fog.
And yet, I’d face uncertain fright
If I but once could reach your height.
Among my fears, which is my test?
The mountain tall or clouded thought?
From which will I first seek some rest
When strength is gone and doubt expressed?
Dear Brother, you have gone before
With sixteen stones for glowing light.
I ask again, please, pray once more
That I, too, might have knowledge sure.
Consider mountain, rock, and stone,
With clouds and fog that veil the Light.
The obstacle that hides the throne
Is also that which makes Him known.
Just as the Lord without disguise
Stretched forth his hand and touched the stones,
The veil was taken from your eyes
And doubt gave way to parted skies.
When few with faith are thus endowed
Shall I with hope appraise my own
By mountains climbed, which veils enshroud,
Or my comfort among the clouds?
Hail, Brother! Thou that stands
Upon Mount Shelem, nigh with God,
With eighteen stones now in thy hands
To light the way to distant lands.
And so it is when you return,
You bring the height of mountains back
Deep in your heart where hope will yearn,
Then I with faith will start to learn.
http://saltypockets.blogspot.com/
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Trust
Trust is the ransom of the heart.
The note’s demands sought, gathered by time,
Are enormous and firm.
It is the price by which friendship is bought.
This cost is a piece of the soul.
That part of self named, to another once given,
Misplaced or not,
Can be rejected but never reclaimed.
Take care where the soul is spent.
Whether lost or acquired, there are few greater costs.
Next to life and love,
Few gifts are thought higher.
Trust stretches the capacity to be.
It makes love stronger, and the strength of will deeper.
When it is shared,
The depth of one’s hope lasts longer.
Faith is required to give trust away.
With confidence sure in rewards not yet gained,
Despite risk of loss,
Trust is the power of more.
http://saltypockets.blogspot.com/
The note’s demands sought, gathered by time,
Are enormous and firm.
It is the price by which friendship is bought.
This cost is a piece of the soul.
That part of self named, to another once given,
Misplaced or not,
Can be rejected but never reclaimed.
Take care where the soul is spent.
Whether lost or acquired, there are few greater costs.
Next to life and love,
Few gifts are thought higher.
Trust stretches the capacity to be.
It makes love stronger, and the strength of will deeper.
When it is shared,
The depth of one’s hope lasts longer.
Faith is required to give trust away.
With confidence sure in rewards not yet gained,
Despite risk of loss,
Trust is the power of more.
http://saltypockets.blogspot.com/
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Reasons to Love
"The trouble with the world and the trouble with you and me is that we don't love each other enough. And if we do, we don't bother to show it, or we don't bother to say it. If the world is to know love, it has to be in your heart and in mine. And the Lord can fill our hearts with love if we will just go to Him."
- Marjorie Pay Hinckley (1911-2004)
I love this quote by Marjorie Pay Hinckley. Just before she passed away at the age of 92 nearly six years ago, Sister Hinckley was still a very attractive woman. She attracted the hearts of many because of the way she radiated love. She had a presence of strength, resolve, and happiness that are worthy of emulation. Sister Hinckley understood the power of love and how it can bless the lives of many, including those she did not know.
Today my heart is full of more feelings than thoughts. If I can take advantage of Valentine’s Day as an opportunity to reflect on the gift of love, perhaps you will be able to appreciate a small portion of what I am feeling.
****
How many slams in an old screen door?
Depends how loud you shut it.
How many slices in a bread?
Depends how thin you cut it.
How much good inside a day?
Depends how good you live 'em.
How much love inside a friend?
Depends how much you give 'em.
- Shel Silverstein (1930-1999)
There is a certain selfish part of me that is prone to wait for love before giving any away. In the hope that I may discover how much I mean to someone else, I wait for them to demonstrate their love first. Oh, how often understanding is blinded by fear. Regarding the adage that love begets love, I have learned that when I am quick to give love I don’t have to wait long for it to return in abundance. Shel Silverstein reminds me that a friend has so much more to give me when I refuse to wait.
****
“Love is an irresistible desire to be irresistibly desired.”
- Robert Frost (1874-1963)
Love may be realized in a variety of ways. This power may exist romantically between two individuals. It may also be equally sought for by a parent or child of the other. The desire for friendship outside of a family relationship is also very compelling. But perhaps the greatest need that we may have is to feel the love of God. While hearts may be broken by others, the Lord promises us comfort. “I love them that love me; and those that seek me early shall find me.” (Proverbs 8:17)
“Draw near unto me and I will draw near unto you; seek me diligently and ye shall find….” (Doctrine & Covenants 88:63)
****
Themes
The strong desire for love is one
that few do not possess.
While often felt, the common theme
is not regarded less.
Without this love, a single heart
feels vacant and alone.
A heart that yearns may fast be stopped
when one holds back their own.
But when one feels and fills a need
for love the heart desires,
that man or woman then can fuel
a thousand glowing fires.
****
There is a great difference between love unfeigned and desire unrestrained. The prophet Alma said to his son, Shiblon, “see that ye bridle all your passions, that ye may be filled with love….” (Alma 38:12) This would suggest that love is much more than desire. It is exhibited by control and restraint. The absence of such control reflects a shadow of love only, one that is not complete or perfect.
****
“And charity suffereth long, and is kind, and envieth not, and is not puffed up, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil, and rejoiceth not in iniquity but rejoiceth in the truth, beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. Wherefore, my beloved brethren, if ye have not charity, ye are nothing, for charity never faileth. Wherefore, cleave unto charity, which is the greatest of all, for all things must fail – But charity is the pure love of Christ, and it endureth forever; and whoso is found possessed of it at the last day, it shall be well with him.” (Moroni 7:45-47)
****
“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13)
“A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.” (John 13:34-35)
I will be eternally grateful for the sacrifice that Jesus made for me. I know He lives. I know the things He taught are true, and I will continue to follow the path that He provided that I may be worthy to return to His presence and that of the Father. I hope to change my life so that I may love as He loved, and live as He lived.
http://saltypockets.blogspot.com/
- Marjorie Pay Hinckley (1911-2004)
I love this quote by Marjorie Pay Hinckley. Just before she passed away at the age of 92 nearly six years ago, Sister Hinckley was still a very attractive woman. She attracted the hearts of many because of the way she radiated love. She had a presence of strength, resolve, and happiness that are worthy of emulation. Sister Hinckley understood the power of love and how it can bless the lives of many, including those she did not know.
Today my heart is full of more feelings than thoughts. If I can take advantage of Valentine’s Day as an opportunity to reflect on the gift of love, perhaps you will be able to appreciate a small portion of what I am feeling.
****
How many slams in an old screen door?
Depends how loud you shut it.
How many slices in a bread?
Depends how thin you cut it.
How much good inside a day?
Depends how good you live 'em.
How much love inside a friend?
Depends how much you give 'em.
- Shel Silverstein (1930-1999)
There is a certain selfish part of me that is prone to wait for love before giving any away. In the hope that I may discover how much I mean to someone else, I wait for them to demonstrate their love first. Oh, how often understanding is blinded by fear. Regarding the adage that love begets love, I have learned that when I am quick to give love I don’t have to wait long for it to return in abundance. Shel Silverstein reminds me that a friend has so much more to give me when I refuse to wait.
****
“Love is an irresistible desire to be irresistibly desired.”
- Robert Frost (1874-1963)
Love may be realized in a variety of ways. This power may exist romantically between two individuals. It may also be equally sought for by a parent or child of the other. The desire for friendship outside of a family relationship is also very compelling. But perhaps the greatest need that we may have is to feel the love of God. While hearts may be broken by others, the Lord promises us comfort. “I love them that love me; and those that seek me early shall find me.” (Proverbs 8:17)
“Draw near unto me and I will draw near unto you; seek me diligently and ye shall find….” (Doctrine & Covenants 88:63)
****
Themes
The strong desire for love is one
that few do not possess.
While often felt, the common theme
is not regarded less.
Without this love, a single heart
feels vacant and alone.
A heart that yearns may fast be stopped
when one holds back their own.
But when one feels and fills a need
for love the heart desires,
that man or woman then can fuel
a thousand glowing fires.
****
There is a great difference between love unfeigned and desire unrestrained. The prophet Alma said to his son, Shiblon, “see that ye bridle all your passions, that ye may be filled with love….” (Alma 38:12) This would suggest that love is much more than desire. It is exhibited by control and restraint. The absence of such control reflects a shadow of love only, one that is not complete or perfect.
****
“And charity suffereth long, and is kind, and envieth not, and is not puffed up, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil, and rejoiceth not in iniquity but rejoiceth in the truth, beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. Wherefore, my beloved brethren, if ye have not charity, ye are nothing, for charity never faileth. Wherefore, cleave unto charity, which is the greatest of all, for all things must fail – But charity is the pure love of Christ, and it endureth forever; and whoso is found possessed of it at the last day, it shall be well with him.” (Moroni 7:45-47)
****
“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13)
“A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.” (John 13:34-35)
I will be eternally grateful for the sacrifice that Jesus made for me. I know He lives. I know the things He taught are true, and I will continue to follow the path that He provided that I may be worthy to return to His presence and that of the Father. I hope to change my life so that I may love as He loved, and live as He lived.
http://saltypockets.blogspot.com/
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Desire
Over the past ten years I have been working on a novel inspired by two verses in the Book of Ether contained in the Book of Mormon. My curiosity has caused me to wonder how two separate nations can be brought to their knees to the point of near extinction. I believe the real reason lies in a power that begins very small in the heart of each individual. Unchecked, these motivations provide an immense amount of fuel for a lifetime of decisions. Lately I have put my ideas on the shelf to take care of other responsibilities, but I still find the study intriguing.
The most prominent theme in the Book of Mormon is clearly the witness that Jesus Christ lives and that he visited the people in the Western Hemisphere after His resurrection. Other important themes are the importance of covenants made with God, the pride cycle that we each tend to go through in various degrees, and the power of secret combinations. While it is not a primary focus, secret combinations, and how to deal with them, is an overarching theme of the writings in Helaman, Third Nephi, Mormon, and Ether.
I look at the motives to establish Zion and secret combinations as being direct opposites. The purpose of Zion is to build up the ideal society. The objective of secret combinations is to destroy all societies, as was demonstrated with the Nephites and the Jaredites.
Personally, I see no need to fear. We live in the only dispensation that will not fail and fall into apostasy. However, we have been warned of what is coming and how we need to prepare. We have been given what we need to understand the pertinent parts of secret combinations for our benefit.
Moroni tells us in Ether 8:24, “Wherefore, the Lord commandeth you, when ye shall see these things come among you that ye shall awake to a sense of your awful situation, because of this secret combination which shall be among you; or wo be unto it, because of the blood of them who have been slain; for they cry from the dust for vengeance upon it, and also upon those who built it up.”
In Mormon 8:34-35, Moroni also says, “Behold, the Lord hath shown unto me great and marvelous things concerning that which must shortly come, at that day when these things shall come forth among you. Behold, I speak unto you as if ye were present, and yet ye are not. But behold, Jesus Christ hath shown you unto me, and I know your doing.”
These two statements tell us that the Lord has shown Moroni our day, and what to expect when they happen. The intriguing part to me is that Moroni states that we would awake to our awful situation, which means that if we are not watching carefully, the situation will catch us by surprise. He also says “when,” not “if.”
Moroni then tells us why he included this information in his record. Continuing in Ether 8:26 we read, “Wherefore, I, Moroni, am commanded to write these things that evil may be done away, and that the time may come that Satan may have no power upon the hearts of the children of men, but that they may be persuaded to do good continually, that they may come unto the fountain of all righteousness and be saved.”
As I have pondered this topic and the related accounts in the Book of Mormon, I have come to understand that the desire of an individual is very powerful – it has tremendous effects on both the individual and society at large. Desire unchecked is the seed of secret combinations. Even if we are not engaged in secret combinations, we may support them through indifference.
In Helaman 6:31-32, Mormon tells us the predicament the ancient Nephites faced before the Savior’s first advent. “And now behold, he had got great hold upon the hearts of the Nephites; yea, insomuch that they had become exceedingly wicked; yea, the more part of them had turned out of the way of righteousness, and did trample under their feet the commandments of God, and did turn unto their own ways, and did build up unto themselves idols of their gold and their silver. And it came to pass that all these iniquities did come unto them in the space of not many years….”
Mormon goes on to describe how the Nephites, who became focused on their wealth more than God, began to dwindle in unbelief while the Lamanites began to grow in the knowledge of God. Because of this, the Spirit of the Lord began to withdraw because of the hardness of their hearts – a hardness which I believe was a very gradual process. This is implied by the use of the word “began” three times in reference to the Nephites, the Lamanites, and the Holy Spirit. Consequently, the Nephites supported the secret combinations which were around them. A lack of effort to resist these combinations allowed them to benefit materially from the works of others.
My interest in this topic is not to explore the darker side of the said combinations, but rather to understand the concerns that caused Moroni to write so much on the matter. My hope is that understanding the opposition may help me make deliberate choices for good, and prepare for the establishment of the Zion foreseen by ancient prophets.
In an effort to clarify the thoughts driving my story, I wrote a concept summary in poetic form. Poetry helps me cut to the essence of an idea. I share it here as a quick look at the power of desire unchecked.
Desire,
A subtle flame conceived in the heart –
Invisible, but proud in the street.
Without restraint, it becomes a master,
Fooling the author to believe the opposite.
Desire forgets the poor and feeds ambition.
It quickens senses and stirs the heart,
Yet lulls reason to sleep.
Desire dominates will.
With mastery, it spreads with whispers,
Filling homes, closets, and thoughts.
Preying upon some and enlisting others,
It despises those who offer nothing.
Merchants, officers, and politic-makers
Garb their master in power obtained.
Distinguished by rank and chance for learning
They walk in their sleep, indifferent to the sun.
Seduced by gain and deceived by flattery,
The once innocent trade ethics for advantage,
Until bound fast, occasionally remembering
The wakeful freedom of control.
The hot wind murmurs. The silent heart plots.
Walls listen intently in the shade,
Yet few trouble to douse the flame.
Secret and dark, it stays hidden.
Desire combines with faithful servants
To alter law and destroy the measure
By which it may be fatally judged,
Dismissing those less useful.
Each servant followed by another,
The master wastes, then replaces,
Fueling a fiery system of destruction,
Fanning without restraint.
Vain things are offered and believed.
Nothing matters but the secret.
Not people, not law, nor the sacred –
Nothing, but the opposition.
Awake! Awake, from vanity and death!
Look to the source and not the shadow.
See the power that binds you captive.
We are the enemy, and the enemy is combined.
http://saltypockets.blogspot.com/
The most prominent theme in the Book of Mormon is clearly the witness that Jesus Christ lives and that he visited the people in the Western Hemisphere after His resurrection. Other important themes are the importance of covenants made with God, the pride cycle that we each tend to go through in various degrees, and the power of secret combinations. While it is not a primary focus, secret combinations, and how to deal with them, is an overarching theme of the writings in Helaman, Third Nephi, Mormon, and Ether.
I look at the motives to establish Zion and secret combinations as being direct opposites. The purpose of Zion is to build up the ideal society. The objective of secret combinations is to destroy all societies, as was demonstrated with the Nephites and the Jaredites.
Personally, I see no need to fear. We live in the only dispensation that will not fail and fall into apostasy. However, we have been warned of what is coming and how we need to prepare. We have been given what we need to understand the pertinent parts of secret combinations for our benefit.
Moroni tells us in Ether 8:24, “Wherefore, the Lord commandeth you, when ye shall see these things come among you that ye shall awake to a sense of your awful situation, because of this secret combination which shall be among you; or wo be unto it, because of the blood of them who have been slain; for they cry from the dust for vengeance upon it, and also upon those who built it up.”
In Mormon 8:34-35, Moroni also says, “Behold, the Lord hath shown unto me great and marvelous things concerning that which must shortly come, at that day when these things shall come forth among you. Behold, I speak unto you as if ye were present, and yet ye are not. But behold, Jesus Christ hath shown you unto me, and I know your doing.”
These two statements tell us that the Lord has shown Moroni our day, and what to expect when they happen. The intriguing part to me is that Moroni states that we would awake to our awful situation, which means that if we are not watching carefully, the situation will catch us by surprise. He also says “when,” not “if.”
Moroni then tells us why he included this information in his record. Continuing in Ether 8:26 we read, “Wherefore, I, Moroni, am commanded to write these things that evil may be done away, and that the time may come that Satan may have no power upon the hearts of the children of men, but that they may be persuaded to do good continually, that they may come unto the fountain of all righteousness and be saved.”
As I have pondered this topic and the related accounts in the Book of Mormon, I have come to understand that the desire of an individual is very powerful – it has tremendous effects on both the individual and society at large. Desire unchecked is the seed of secret combinations. Even if we are not engaged in secret combinations, we may support them through indifference.
In Helaman 6:31-32, Mormon tells us the predicament the ancient Nephites faced before the Savior’s first advent. “And now behold, he had got great hold upon the hearts of the Nephites; yea, insomuch that they had become exceedingly wicked; yea, the more part of them had turned out of the way of righteousness, and did trample under their feet the commandments of God, and did turn unto their own ways, and did build up unto themselves idols of their gold and their silver. And it came to pass that all these iniquities did come unto them in the space of not many years….”
Mormon goes on to describe how the Nephites, who became focused on their wealth more than God, began to dwindle in unbelief while the Lamanites began to grow in the knowledge of God. Because of this, the Spirit of the Lord began to withdraw because of the hardness of their hearts – a hardness which I believe was a very gradual process. This is implied by the use of the word “began” three times in reference to the Nephites, the Lamanites, and the Holy Spirit. Consequently, the Nephites supported the secret combinations which were around them. A lack of effort to resist these combinations allowed them to benefit materially from the works of others.
My interest in this topic is not to explore the darker side of the said combinations, but rather to understand the concerns that caused Moroni to write so much on the matter. My hope is that understanding the opposition may help me make deliberate choices for good, and prepare for the establishment of the Zion foreseen by ancient prophets.
In an effort to clarify the thoughts driving my story, I wrote a concept summary in poetic form. Poetry helps me cut to the essence of an idea. I share it here as a quick look at the power of desire unchecked.
Desire,
A subtle flame conceived in the heart –
Invisible, but proud in the street.
Without restraint, it becomes a master,
Fooling the author to believe the opposite.
Desire forgets the poor and feeds ambition.
It quickens senses and stirs the heart,
Yet lulls reason to sleep.
Desire dominates will.
With mastery, it spreads with whispers,
Filling homes, closets, and thoughts.
Preying upon some and enlisting others,
It despises those who offer nothing.
Merchants, officers, and politic-makers
Garb their master in power obtained.
Distinguished by rank and chance for learning
They walk in their sleep, indifferent to the sun.
Seduced by gain and deceived by flattery,
The once innocent trade ethics for advantage,
Until bound fast, occasionally remembering
The wakeful freedom of control.
The hot wind murmurs. The silent heart plots.
Walls listen intently in the shade,
Yet few trouble to douse the flame.
Secret and dark, it stays hidden.
Desire combines with faithful servants
To alter law and destroy the measure
By which it may be fatally judged,
Dismissing those less useful.
Each servant followed by another,
The master wastes, then replaces,
Fueling a fiery system of destruction,
Fanning without restraint.
Vain things are offered and believed.
Nothing matters but the secret.
Not people, not law, nor the sacred –
Nothing, but the opposition.
Awake! Awake, from vanity and death!
Look to the source and not the shadow.
See the power that binds you captive.
We are the enemy, and the enemy is combined.
http://saltypockets.blogspot.com/
Sunday, August 16, 2009
The Autumn Road
I believe that each of us starts out making important lifelong choices. Those who are happiest often spend the rest of their lives making more choices to honor those made previously. This is particularly true when those choices are covenants.
There is a lot of power in covenants. However, like other things that are inanimate, they only have as much power as we give them. When we keep our covenants, there is added power beyond our own because of what Father brings to the arrangement – He always sweetens the deal.
There are many things that can distract us from our covenants. Not all of them are bad. Some have to do with priorities, others merely with timing. Some choices will require us to put something off indefinitely. Many decisions only require us to yield the right of way to something better at the moment. Our decisions define our priorities.
In his talk, “Good, Better, Best,” the apostle, Elder Dallin H. Oaks said, “We have to forego some good things in order to choose others that are better or best because they develop faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and strengthen our families.”
I pondered this subject a few years ago and decided to capture the essence of my thoughts in a poem I call, “The Autumn Road.” I believe there are seasons in life where we would like to do something good and worthwhile, only to find it’s just not the right time. We may even feel that things are falling around us which make it that much more appealing to change our course and follow our desires at the moment. Again, our decisions define our priorities.
A month ago I traveled this road,
And let my mind run on alone.
There in the wood two roads diverge,
But one, to me, remains unknown.
That night I stood between the two,
At length before my feet arrived,
While something there called out to me,
To take the road I hadn’t tried.
I wondered at the path not seen,
Of canopy and wooded hall –
Clear brook, soft earth, and changing trees,
With leaves that wear the dress of fall.
My heart led out. I almost walked,
But stopped with thoughts of home so near.
There were, that night, more pressing needs,
And welcome words I longed to hear.
Perchance that I would be delayed,
I said that road I would not take.
Ere long my feet will there return;
Another day that choice I’ll make.
I tend to place a lot of trust in decisions that I have made earlier in life when I can say I knew it was a right decision when I made it. Confirming my decisions with prayer and the promised inspiration that follows gives me added reassurance that I am still on the right path.
We should expect to be tried and tested on significant decisions in life. The most important choices tend to lead to the greatest blessings. As we are told by Moroni in Ether 12:6, “I would show unto the world that faith is things which are hoped for and not seen; wherefore, dispute not because ye see not, for ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith.”
I think each of us will question decisions we have made at some earlier point in our lives, especially when it appears that things are different than we expected. My personal experience tells me, stay the course. The Lord told Joseph Smith in Doctrine and Covenants 11:12-14, “And now, verily, verily, I say unto thee, put your trust in that Spirit which leadeth to do good — yea, to do justly, to walk humbly, to judge righteously; and this is my Spirit. Verily, verily, I say unto you, I will impart unto you of my Spirit, which shall enlighten your mind, which shall fill your soul with joy; And then shall ye know, or by this shall you know, all things whatsoever you desire of me, which are pertaining unto things of righteousness, in faith believing in me that you shall receive.”
An important key in making our choices in life is to include a member of the Godhead. King Benjamin tells us that it is in our natures to make bad choices. In Mosiah 3:19 he says, “For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord….”
When we follow the promptings of the Holy Ghost we can be assured that we have made good choices and that a promised blessing will be waiting for us at the end of the trial. At the same time we become more like the Savior, Jesus Christ. Our hearts become purer and we become sanctified because we yield the right of way to the best decisions.
King Benjamin then tells us that we become something greater in the process. He continues, “…and becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father.”
The happiest people I know have spent their lives making choices that honor lifelong choices they made previously. How grateful I am for the extra help the Lord provides in answer to my prayers. I know He will help us. If He will help us when we start, He will certainly help us finish.
http://saltypockets.blogspot.com/
There is a lot of power in covenants. However, like other things that are inanimate, they only have as much power as we give them. When we keep our covenants, there is added power beyond our own because of what Father brings to the arrangement – He always sweetens the deal.
There are many things that can distract us from our covenants. Not all of them are bad. Some have to do with priorities, others merely with timing. Some choices will require us to put something off indefinitely. Many decisions only require us to yield the right of way to something better at the moment. Our decisions define our priorities.
In his talk, “Good, Better, Best,” the apostle, Elder Dallin H. Oaks said, “We have to forego some good things in order to choose others that are better or best because they develop faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and strengthen our families.”
I pondered this subject a few years ago and decided to capture the essence of my thoughts in a poem I call, “The Autumn Road.” I believe there are seasons in life where we would like to do something good and worthwhile, only to find it’s just not the right time. We may even feel that things are falling around us which make it that much more appealing to change our course and follow our desires at the moment. Again, our decisions define our priorities.
A month ago I traveled this road,
And let my mind run on alone.
There in the wood two roads diverge,
But one, to me, remains unknown.
That night I stood between the two,
At length before my feet arrived,
While something there called out to me,
To take the road I hadn’t tried.
I wondered at the path not seen,
Of canopy and wooded hall –
Clear brook, soft earth, and changing trees,
With leaves that wear the dress of fall.
My heart led out. I almost walked,
But stopped with thoughts of home so near.
There were, that night, more pressing needs,
And welcome words I longed to hear.
Perchance that I would be delayed,
I said that road I would not take.
Ere long my feet will there return;
Another day that choice I’ll make.
I tend to place a lot of trust in decisions that I have made earlier in life when I can say I knew it was a right decision when I made it. Confirming my decisions with prayer and the promised inspiration that follows gives me added reassurance that I am still on the right path.
We should expect to be tried and tested on significant decisions in life. The most important choices tend to lead to the greatest blessings. As we are told by Moroni in Ether 12:6, “I would show unto the world that faith is things which are hoped for and not seen; wherefore, dispute not because ye see not, for ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith.”
I think each of us will question decisions we have made at some earlier point in our lives, especially when it appears that things are different than we expected. My personal experience tells me, stay the course. The Lord told Joseph Smith in Doctrine and Covenants 11:12-14, “And now, verily, verily, I say unto thee, put your trust in that Spirit which leadeth to do good — yea, to do justly, to walk humbly, to judge righteously; and this is my Spirit. Verily, verily, I say unto you, I will impart unto you of my Spirit, which shall enlighten your mind, which shall fill your soul with joy; And then shall ye know, or by this shall you know, all things whatsoever you desire of me, which are pertaining unto things of righteousness, in faith believing in me that you shall receive.”
An important key in making our choices in life is to include a member of the Godhead. King Benjamin tells us that it is in our natures to make bad choices. In Mosiah 3:19 he says, “For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord….”
When we follow the promptings of the Holy Ghost we can be assured that we have made good choices and that a promised blessing will be waiting for us at the end of the trial. At the same time we become more like the Savior, Jesus Christ. Our hearts become purer and we become sanctified because we yield the right of way to the best decisions.
King Benjamin then tells us that we become something greater in the process. He continues, “…and becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father.”
The happiest people I know have spent their lives making choices that honor lifelong choices they made previously. How grateful I am for the extra help the Lord provides in answer to my prayers. I know He will help us. If He will help us when we start, He will certainly help us finish.
http://saltypockets.blogspot.com/
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