Against Nothingness

Inns by Andrew Demoline Insecure and unsecured The road shall always be, But there, upon that hill, I spy A light to welcome me. The Inn upon the hill you see, Fire warm and food for all. The road is always very long, the world too large for men, But find me welcome just this night And come morn' I'll rise again. The Inn upon the hill you see, Fire warm and food for all. The Inn upon the hill you see Bids welcome, though its small. Highwaymen and vagabonds, may steal and slay and fight But give me four strong walls and friends And I know I'll fare alright. The Inn upon the hill you see, Fire warm and food for all. The Inn upon the hill you see Bids welcome, though its small. The Inn upon the hill you see, Strong walls, good drink, and friends. Life, it makes my feet ache, Rains stay far to long, But when I step inside to rest Within me rises song. The Inn upon the hill you see, Fire

The Orange By Wendy Cope At lunchtime I bought a huge orange -  The size of it made us all laugh.  I peeled it and shared it with Robert and Dave -  They got quarters and I had a half.  And that orange, it made me so happy, As ordinary things often do Just lately. The shopping. A walk in the park.  This is peace and contentment. It's new.  The rest of the day was quite easy.  I did all the jobs on my list And enjoyed them and had some time over.  I love you. I'm glad I exist. 

The Long and Short of It I like shortcuts. Point A to point B in five easy steps! Why not four? If one can reduce the number of reps, Won’t one soar? I like settling. Is not 70 to 80 good enough? One giant leap! When 80 to 85 will be rough? And hardly cheap. But I’m worried. Technology makes it so simple, automatic, To take leaps and bounds over people, and it’s tragic. So then I think… What of times and places I won’t avert? Long walks What of all the people I won’t desert? Love talks I like long cuts. Point A to point B in five easy steps? Why not more! What if higher and further take more reps? Then I’d soar! I’ll never settle. 85, for love, is not enough! Can’t we go deeper? Yes, 100 will surely be rough! Could love be cheaper? I suppose long and short Each have their place But don’t let the light of a screen Confuse and displace

On the Strength of All Conviction and the Stamina of Love by Jennifer Michael Hecht Sometimes I think we could have gone on. All of us. Trying. Forever. But they didn't fill the desert with pyramids. They just built some. Some. They're not still out there, building them now. Everyone, everywhere, gets up, and goes home. Yet we must not Diabolize time. Right? We must not curse the passage of time.

He Wishes for the Clothes of Heaven by. W.B. Yeats Had I the heavens' embroidered cloths, Enwrought with golden and silver light The blue and the dim and the dark cloths Of night and light and the half-light, I would spread the cloths under your feet: But I, being poor, have only my dreams I have spread my dreams under your feet;  Tread softly because you tread on my dreams. 

When I look at thy heavens, the work of thy fingers,  the moon and the stars which thou hast established Man that is born of a woman is of few days,  and full of trouble.   What is man that thou art mindful of him,  and the son of man that thou dost care for him? He comes forth like a flower, and withers;  he flees like a shadow, and continues not. Yet thou hast made him little less than God,  and dost crown him with glory and honor. And dost thou open thy eyes upon such a one and bring him into judgment with thee? Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean?  There is not one.   Thou hast given him dominion over the works of thy hands;  thou hast put all things under his feet, Since his days are determined, and the number of his months is with thee,  and thou hast appointed his bounds that he cannot pass, all sheep and oxen, and also the beasts of the field,   the birds of the air,  and the fish of the sea. whatever passes