Corinthian Bells

Tags

Corinthian Bells, heaven, joy, music, narrative poem, Wind River Chimes

Singing, shouting, they sing Heaven:
Heaven-dancing harmonies,
Gently moving, sorrows soothing,
Whispering a tune to please:
Gladsome glimmers, peaceful shimmers,
Heaven humming in the breeze,
Brushing melodies from sideswipes,
Painting pleasing tonal frieze,
Well-tuned tones to hitch the heart-strings,
Stirring grace-note memories,
Thunderclaps or subtle sighings,
Heaven in the midst of these,
Chiming Heaven in our hearing,
Echoes of a longer psalm,
Sweet surprise to fill our joy banks,
Cladding day and night in song.

by Gwennon
February 21, 2024

for CORINTHIAN BELLS, the most perfect wind-chimes in the world, perhaps the history of the world!!!

written all over town as my kind husband drove us for errands; partly composed on a bench at the mall, where I sat counting syllables and looking for rhyming words. My husband was unusually patient with me as I caught and reeled in one line or phrase at a time.

Peace Out

Anyone who has ever had a preventable accident may understand our plight: how desperately we clutched in vain for the rescue that reflexes exercised only a second earlier might have provided. Alas!!!! The jar was just too slippery, the hands not quite fast enough, and the tile floor entirely too solid. Before we quite knew what had happened, the mess was made. And there we were…

Peace Out

I writhed while we let our poor dogs bark too long.
I know all the hearers will say we were wrong
To let them stay barking alone there outside
While innocent folks peaceful sleep were denied.
I’m hoping the neighbors will give us a pass
When they learn we were sweeping up glass.

We’re still cleaning up, and the process is loud.
I know here and now we don’t play to the crowd
As the wet and dry vacuum is filling its cheeks,
While giving the neighbors a taste of its shrieks.
I’m hoping the neighbors will give us a pass
Since we’re still finding pieces of glass.

In future I hope I’ll run slower to clip
Some weary offender with harshness let slip
While dealing with mess they did not mean to make,
Who look for some grace as they face their mistake.
I hope I decide there to give them a pass,
Since they, too, might be sweeping up glass.

by Gwennon
February 3, 2024 at 11:30pm

for the slick, formerly-dependable, glass water bottle that suddenly skated just out of reach of a welcome rescue

“For you will be treated as you treat others. The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged.”
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭7‬:‭2‬ ‭NLT‬‬

“Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful. Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven:”
‭‭Luke‬ ‭6‬:‭36‬-‭37‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Man of Sorrows

Tags

God, Isaiah 53, Jesus, man of sorrows, pain

Hold my hand!
Rescue me!
Please hold my heart!
Jagged messy scars smart sharp.
Floods of rising tears here start.
Make my unbelief depart.
Help me as new wounds abut.
Help me pray, I know not what.
Help me pray. I know not how.
Help me trust You fully now.
Help me, when I’d rather curse.
Help me not make bad things worse.
Man of Sorrows,
Let me know
You, too, in hard paths did go.
You were tested by harsh foe.
You were tested fierce, laid low.
Kindly extra grace bestow!

Gwennon
December 10, 2023

“He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.” [emphasis added]
‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭53‬:‭3‬-‭6‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Christmas is often a time of mixed emotions, more so as we get older. Praying you find a welcome refuge in Jesus this Christmas, especially if your celebration is less joyful than you had hoped. One thing I’m starting to learn is that whatever I feel, God feels it with me, to a greater degree than I do. Run to Jesus, dear friends!

False Guilt

Tags

irony, shortages

Mercilessly
Pounded through my eyes and heart
As I rushed away,
Realizing, via brief eye contact,
That during this trying shortage,
i had taken
What my weary old neighbor craved.
Aye.
Without it
he
COULD NOT
move forward.
Only later,
Losing my way
For several long minutes
Until my eyes
Were thankfully opened,
Could I know
I had NOT cheated him
After all.
While tracking down my missing carriage,
I found the truth:
Hundreds of available slots
Remained yet unclaimed
On the rooftop level
Of ye olde airport parking lot.

Gwennon
December 7, 2023

The small “i” on line 6 was purposely done to show how very small I felt at the time.

Seems like there’s more travel than usual around Christmas time. If I had any sense of geographical direction at all, I’d have a much easier time navigating our airport parking lot.

Praying for safe travels and joyful times for everyone who stops by.

A Crazy Development

One of my old dreams might be about to come true. Is currently in the process of coming true.

Friends from church have cleaned up my musical mess and have put together an album of eleven of my original songs, ten of which are poems I wrote myself, and the other is Edward Shillito’s powerful poem “Jesus of the Scars”, which Shillito published in 1919. Eight Christmases ago, when God asked me what I wanted from Him for Christmas, I requested a melody that would enable me to memorize Shillito’s beautiful poem. The melody came almost before I finished praying.

Three of the poems I have written and posted here on my poetry blog will be included: “Endemic”, “It’s Never Going to Change” and “And That Would Be (MY PEMBERLEY)”. MY PEMBERLEY was the acrostic of that last poem, which has been renamed “Pemberley” on the album.

The name of the album is “Not A Tame Lion”, and my artist name is “poemgirl”. I’m more excited than I can say.

At the moment, I just found the album. God is Good!

And He would still be good even if He had not given me this lovely gift.

I’m not sure where the album is going, or if anyone besides me will listen to it. But now I can buy my own songs for my phone and be able to listen to them or share them with friends. Perhaps the day will come when I can produce my own music and learn to capture music notes for the melodies I hear in my head.

Anyway, for now, that’s all the news that’s fit to print. May God bless you with beautiful dreams of your own coming true!

Elsewhere, Please!!!

Tags

cars, circular poem, complaint, narrative

Feel free to fly. But not in cars.
Take rockets out. Go straight to Mars.
Or otherwise explore the stars.
Trail health and wealth, instead of scars.
Things MEANT to burn include cigars,
And melodies on fast guitars.
But roads don’t burn. So DON’T burn ours!
Feel free to fly. But not in cars.

Gwennon
September 30, 2023

Beautiful Women

Tags

beautiful women, doggie-loves, humor, Laura Doyle TEW, narrative poem

Beautiful women invite others in.
But my “Beauty” is pushy and proud.
Beautiful women let others talk, too,
But my “Beauty” is barky and loud.
Beautiful women will seldom fall prey
To a caustic, sharp case of the churls.
But my sweet darling hound dog is proving to be
Just one of the regular girls.

by Gwennon
August 23, 2023

for my beloved, but not always presentable, “Beautiful Beatrice” (aka, “Beauty”), model 2018 hound dog bed warmer, tm

If only I could introduce Beauty to the liberating teachings of Laura Doyle, of “THE EMPOWERED WIFE” book and podcast. Unfortunately, dogs don’t read English. More’s the pity!

Three Poems

Tags

childhood toys, rubber ducky

THE NEW RUBBER DUCKY

On call companion
Set adrift on sweet bubbles
Amidst childish dreams.

by Gwennon
July 25, 2023, 12:15 pm

for Lizzie

This, strangely, was the second poem
composed in a record four-poem day.
The first was the silly dog poem.
That one grew up organically.
I shared it with my children.
And one asked me for three new poems
all on a subject I had never considered:
the old forgotten bath toy.
I knew it was “impossible”.
Famous last words.
I told her it wasn’t likely,
but to please provide a deadline.
I assured her that with enough time
and perfect conditions,
it would probably never happen.
Would it be blasphemous to say that
God stepped into the writing with me?
Suddenly, titles and stories began building.
In less than two hours,
all the work was done.
Only God could have done that.

SLEEPING SERVANT

Atop the sunny window ledge,
He basks, as troubles fall away.
Without a care, or pressing work,
He rests, and dreams, at break of day.
His shift went late, but joy rose high
As childish, friendly dreams splashed up.
Again at rest, he’s standing by:
The faithful, waiting rubber duck.

by Gwennon
July 25, 2023 12:27 pm

as requested by my Lizzie

ALL WASHED UP

Remembering, she had to smile.
Each work day wreathed itself in joys.
The voyages piled mile on mile,
Intense in fervid, busy noise.
Rough waters left her in their wake,
Emerging fresh from frothy take.
Demanded often at the first,
Removed at will, but then returned,
Upset, sunk deep, squeezed hard by thirst,
Born high on suds and lessons learned.
By youngling eyes and hands ensnared,
Embroiled in secrets softly shared.
Redacted with old childhood gear,
Deserted, much-loved figurine,
Unfailing keeper of good cheer,
Campaigner for a clean routine,
Knight knighted deep in rising tides,
Years bathed in laughing, joyful times.

by Gwennon
July 25, 2023, 1:08 pm (1308 hours)

Poem number three requested by my Lizzie

Falling Down on the Job

Tags

acrostic poem, driving poems, speed limit sign, travel poems

Seeing that number upside down was weird:
Pure weirdness, since that should never happen,
Even for a moment, as they appeared
Expertly fixed in place. But somehow, when
Divided from one of its anchors, it
Lost all power to keep standing up where
It could be seen and read properly. Hit
Multiple times by wind and weather there,
It couldn’t hold on indefinitely.
The poor thing found itself falling until,
Sundered by grim circumstance, it limply
Inverted on the axis of the lone
Good bolt left to its support. SO NOT GOOD!!!
Nope. Someone should fix it. They really should!

Gwennon
October 15, 2019

for a memorable sign on an already forgotten highway

What He Wanted All Along

Tags

Christian walk, God, God's heart for us, Jesus, joy, peace, peace with Jesus

Just at peace, enjoying Jesus
Like a happy, little child,
Bouncing joyfully beside Him
On a journey sweet and wild,
Holding tightly to His ready hand,
Or skipping on ahead,
Finding joy in His mere presence,
To His pleasure fully wed;
Growing daily to reflect Him
To a lost world filled with pain;
Growing fully to respect Him,
Though it might cost short-term gain;
Loving others like He loves,
Though loving well costs everything;
Loving Christ above the world
And its weak, fallen offerings.
Just at peace, enjoying Jesus
All throughout each day and night;
Trusting Jesus through forever,
Knowing He will do what’s right.

Gwennon
July 11, 2020, tweaked May 24, 2023

Minutes ago, as I was playing a portion of JS Bach’s “Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring”, in the part where the left hand carries the melody while the right hand dances busily all over the place, I had a brief picture in my mind of Jesus walking steadily in the company of a happy, bouncing child, and I thought, “That’s the kind of relationship He wants with each of us!” And I want that for myself!