Focus and Frames

There are a thousand ways,
To see what we are seeing,
The way we focus on an image,
Says a lot about ourselves.
 
The way we experience life,
Is filtered through our mind's lense,
We blur some parts, and crop away,
The things we want to hide.
 
We focus extra sharply,
And frame only those few scenes,
That we believe to have been,
Elemental to who we are.
 
Yet, at times, we only focus on,
Our weakness and insecurities,
our pain, our faults, our passing woes,
and print a picture that's quite bleak.
 
So it's always good to have,
A second look at all your frames,
To make sure you have not cropped away,
All the good and great that's really there.
 
For we must not forget dear friend,
That the way we focus is, after all,
A counsious or unconscious act,
Over which we'll always have editorial control.
 

On goals

A goal is but a line we draw,
At that place we want to be,
Just far away to be in sight,
Yet hard to get to without some might.
 
Just like I have said right above,
You must want to meet your goal,
Because, if you do not care enough,
You'll bail out when it gets though.
 
Your goal should make you smile inside,
It should make you long for it,
So that all the time appart,
Makes you work hard to close that gap.
 
People sometimes set their goal,
To mark where others want to be,
Those are empty goals at best,
Once they get there they're bereft.
 
Your goals should be yours at heart,
Even when you share them all,
They must have meaning you can find,
And fill your soul and seize your mind.
 
So, go out into the world today,
And draw those goal lines far and wide.
By setting them you'd have begun,
To start the path to get them done.
 

On chess

There is something fascinating about chess,
It forces the mind to strategize,
To think about the future,
To act,
And to ponder consequences.

Chess could make us better human beings,
It would teach us patience,
Dealing with loss,
And thinking our next move through.

However, there is something sinister about chess,
It's goal is to decimate a battle field,
To siege a king,
To take his queen,
And any soldier that stands in the way.

Chess is about cunning and sacrifice,
Just like life sometimes is,
However, the peril of living three moves ahead,
Is forgetting to enjoy the present that is here.

On quieting your mind

There are times your mind is full,
Of noisy chatter and looping songs,
It makes it tough for quiet thought,
Or to rest after a long, hard haul.

When I'm like this,
I look straight on,
At nothing particular at all,
And picture a bright, white, quiet wall.

When the white has cleared my mind,
I choose one vivid frame,
A sprawling field,
A bold sunset,
Or a snapshot of my family day.

With that image on, I ruminate,
for the thoughts I want to fill my mind,
I choose my soundtrack if need be,
to complement the quiet seeked.

Now I'm readier for the day,
That will try and pull me far away,
From my peaceful quiet scene,
Where I lay, in thought, content.

Therefore, I'll tonight just start,
This calming ritual over again.

If I had some pixie dust

Wouldn't you wish at times,
You had a wand of pixie dust,

To spray on an average day,
And watch cars float away,
And dolphins fly the skies above.
 
Then you could ride a pirate ship,
All the way to the moon,
And travel back with a bag of stars,
Just before lunch at noon.
 
Or you could swing as high as you can,
And touch the clouds with your toes,
Then return down to the ground,
And dip them in a waterfall.
 
Oh, what I wouldn't give,
For a wand of pixie dust to have,
To make dreamy dreams, dreams be,
Until I make them true at last!
 

On being alive

According to Biology,
There are some requirement for life,
To grow, to move, to adapt,
To respond, to reproduce,
And to regain balance after a while.
 
That being the case,
I'm sad to say,
That there are people you could state,
Are not alive.
 
They are unhappily stuck,
Right where they've been,
But do not move, or find balance,
or adapt within.
 
They are impervious to stimuli,
And would find it hard,
To grow or bring new life,
since they close themselves to everyone.
 
Yet maybe I just have it wrong,
And confuse living with having life,
Since it is obvious we are all alive.
 
But I fear some would someday paraphrase,
Thoreau or Dead Poets Society,
And say: "I have life, so I will surely die,
But I am not so sure that I have lived."
So, I try each day for that terrible phrase
not to be mine.
 

You gotta read the signs

When you try something out,
And it just doesn't pan,
No matter how hard you try,
And worse yet, you feel inside,
That you should not do it like that,
I'll tell you what, you gotta read the signs.
 
When you give it your all,
And hold nothing back,
When the ones that know say stop,
And the ones that love say no more,
Pause a while and understand,
You gotta read the signs.
 
Yet when everyone says nay,
But in your heart you see a yes,
When your gut says why not,
Even when the wiseman say no,
When your brain says here we go,
And your mind says I second that,
Don't let anything hold you back,
And give it all you've got,
Because you've just read the signs.
 

Technological dependency

Don't you love tech that works,
that helps you do what you intend,
and maybe even, on the side,
helps you read a book or play a game.
 
Oh what tech has done for us!
It connects us all the time,
to distant people on the other side,
of this shrinking world.
 
And if tech is nice and cool,
it makes its use even more great,
you feel you live right at the edge,
of creation and great discoveries.
 
However, when tech fails, it fails strong,
and leaves us feeling forlorn,
like digital orphans alone,
in an immense, quiet, analog world.
 

The great jump

Life is a risky proposition,
After it makes you feel at home,
Comfortable,
It springs the void of risk,
With opportunity peaking on the far side.

So what do you do?
Do you stay where you are,
Seemingly safe,
And just imagine what could have been?

Or do you brace yourself,
Walk to the edge...
Take a deep breadth...
And jump.

Rearing dreams

Never give up on your dreams,

No matter how far fetched they seem,

If they were possible for you to conceive,

They are more likely than not to really be.

At first treat dreams as fine glass in life,

Handle them with care,

But don't leave them in the cupboard where,

They'll dull, and dust and waste away.

Then take your dreams out for a walk,

Let them get some sun and air,

That will help them grow quite strong,

And it'll give them needed work and wear.

After that the choice is clear,

You must let your dreams roam free,

And battle through that harrowing phase,

Where they'll emerge a reality.

For dreams are like a metal sword,

Until forged by fire they are too brittle,

Until hammered lean they have no form,

But after pain and toil they shine bright and strong.

Your dreams are now ready to battle those,

Who would want nothing more,

than to dash the dreams,

Of us all.

Battle on.

On daydreaming

Take a moment everyday,

To whisk yourself away,

To another land, another place,

Or that spot really like,

And take a stroll or a hike,

As if you're really there,

Feel the breeze, breather the air,

Have the sun warm your face.

So when you return,

All your concerns,

Would have quelled to some extent,

And you can carry on,

And move along,

And not feel burned or spent.

On waiting in line.

I know I shouldn't

But I mind,
Whenever I have to stand in line.

Is as if
My life's passing me by,
While I idly stand.

I try at best,
Not to look,
At the other moving lane.

For I know,
It's just a trap,
And it'll stop if I join it last.

I know they try,
The best they can,
Not to have us wait that while.

But here we are,
In fellowship stuck,
But in a very neat and tidy line.

On looking at mountains

Behold the grandure of the mountain,

The quiet beauty of it,

Looking over the valleys,

As a millennial sentry.

See it exhale fog

As it wakes at sunrise,

And at night when it readies rest.

Feel how it weighs down,

And anchors the landscape,

With its umpertubable solidity.

With its weathered face,

It deters the winds,

And disrupts the mightiest of storms.

Oh, silent mountain,

How hard it is to look at you,

And know that my gaze upon you,

Will be as fleeting as the twinkle of a star,

In your existence.

Yet how hard it is to look away,

From your ecstatic static beauty.

On finding yourself smiling

Have you found yourself,

Smiling for no apparent reason?

It feels great, does it not?

Even when you can't explain,

What made you smile in the first place.

I like it better to find a smile on me,

Than a frown.

Frowns make me look weary and old.

Even when there is nothing wrong.

I must make a note to smile more and more,

It feels better on my skin and creases less,

Besides I just get a kick,

Out of everyone's mistified face.

"What's he so happy about?"

If they only knew,

That I have no idea!

Or do I?

On loved ones missed

Being apart is really rough,

Even when it's for the best,

We sometimes long to grab the car,

And meet you for a matinee.

 

Everyday we think of you,

Even when we miss a call,

And the chance we get to talk,

Turns up the brightness of our day.

 

The best comfort we can have,

Is to see you safe and well,

Even when what we really see,

Is your Facebook page.

 

Wether it will be us there,

Or you here,

We'll see each other some future day,

Yet there is no fear of feeling weird,

Like when you meet a long gone friend.

 

Since there is a bond we forged way back,

That made us family forevermore,

And family never changes,

It just get stronger as we grow.

 

She grows fast

It feels like only yesterday,

I could cradle you in one arm,

Not that I would have dared,

You felt so fragile way back when.

No look at you, so big and strong,

Where has all that time gone,

Thank God your mom and I have had the sense,

Of making every moment with you count.

Because I wouldn't miss this for the world,

Seeing you grow and play, and dance, and sing,

Watching you run and laugh, and ask to hear,

The story of you as a princes, mom queen and dad king.

We love you, never doubt that at all,

You are our treasure, our sun,

You lighten our days even when you missbehave,

Although we rather you would not.

Now come and give us a kiss,

And another of your hugs,

For no matter how old you get,

We will have a need for those.

Look at things with fresh eyes

A theme that I will oft repeat,

Because of how crucial it is,

It's to look at normal things again,

To see what you have missed.

There are so many wondrous sights

Awaiting right beneath our eyes,

That would never have been seen,

If we had not paused a while.

So do your self a favor, friend,

And look around you through your day,

I guarantee you'll be impressed,

Where sometimes beauty lies in wait.

On Sundays

Is it just me?
Or are Sundays' sunsets the very best?
It just seems that when I see,
a sunset that makes my heart skip,
I look at the calendar and say:
"Of course, It's Sunday."

I guess the sun must know,
that Sunday he must show off,
To earn its name.

If I had a day named after me,
I would definetly try to be,
at my very best that day.

Then again who would name a day, Fernandoday,
That would be just silly!

Hmmm, Fernandoday...
It does kinda have a ring to it.

On Easter

Easter is such a treat,

When children get involved,

I love to see their looks of awe,

When seeking eggs along.

 

Santa leaves gifts to open,

So do the three wise men,

But only the Easter bunny makes,

The kids go out and search.

 

What better way to rejoice,

In a new spring that has arrived,

What better way to teach our kids,

That seeking is part of life.

 

There will be time later on,

To explain the meaning of it all,

For now, let's just let them know,

That this Sunday is a special day,

A day we happily celebrate,

For something wonderful has taken place,

That fills us all with hope and faith...

And Easter rabbits and colored eggs.

 

On being artistic

 

Many think that to do art,

An artist you should be,

That you must have,

Talent and grace,

Or else you won't succeed.

Yet, that does not mean,

You should not try,

To dabble in the world of art,

To grab a pen and do a sketch,

To take your cam and take some pics,

Or give a brush a whirl.

You never know what you might make,

No matter what others will say,

No matter what others will see,

When they gaze upon your piece.

What matters is that it is yours,

That you created your own art,

And that before you came along,

that page, that frame, that pic was blank!

 

Fish in the sky!

This post, you will find,

is kinda bizarre,

But that is because,

There's a fish in the sky!

 

I walked to my car,

looked up at the sky,

And lo and behold,

There's a fish in the sky!

 

I pulled out my phone,

And readied the cam,

But all I though was,

There's a fish in the sky!

 

Who would believe?

Photoshop! They would scream.

But I give you my word.

There's a fish in the sky!

 

All of my pics,

Have been tweaked and retweaked,

But not this one 'cause,

There's a fish in the sky!

 

And you know what? I don't care,

If you don't think it was there,

'cause I got to see,

There's a fish in the sky!

 

 

When down, Look up

When your day has been dreary,
And you feel blue and weary,
Step outside for a while.

Sit on a bench,
look at the sky,
And feast on the Great Artist's art.

See huge clouds traveling,
Or the sun's rays unraveling,
The colors below the cloud cover.

Or at night see the moon,
Alight in full bloom,
The fields of stars hanging over.

But If the sky is all bland,
Or gray, and not grand,
Don't let that bring you down.

For the canvas is clean,
Since the Artist has been,
Getting ready for the next work of art.

 

 

 

Challenges

A challenge is the best of things
If taken the right way
It'll make you try and stretch your reach
To grasp what's far ahead.

It will make you meditate
And give your mind a sweat.
It will keep you late at night
And wake you clear as day.

A challenge is one great thing
When taken in good sport.
It will make learn so more
And grow you far and deep.

On serving dishes

 

I believe
Everyday more
That life is best served warm,
Warm with Feelings
Warm with love,
Warm with snapshots of us all.

And I believe,
Even more still,
That passion is best served hot,
Hot with action,
Hot with courage,
Hot with dreams that always flourish.

That's why I don't get,
Why some would choose,
To hate and seek revenge,
Since both those dishes,
Are cold and wishes,
That rot the heart they serve.

So, if a cold dish,
Is what you wish,
Why don't you have Ice cream instead?

On bad dreams

There are few things worse,
Than waking in sweat,
With a nightmare still in play.

You feel despair and even dread,
Until you check that all is well,
That all is right, that all is there,
that nothing happened through the night.

Here's a tip I use a lot,
If I need to sleep some more.
I force myself to go back there,
And change the nightmare's evil plot.

I take control,
I change the facts,
I have everything undone.

And even when the dream's too strong,
And it's about to pass again,
I whisper to my self inside,
It's just a dream, you have control,
It's just a dream, everything's fine,
It's just a dream, you can wake up.

On treating yourself

If you're like me,
It would be hard,
To give yourself a gift.

Even when,
You have worked hard,
Paid your bills,
Crossed your tees,
And saved for rainy days.

You find it tough,
To say congrats,
And treat yourself,
To what you like

Let's make a pact,
and from now on,
After we have settled scores,
Let's take a bit,
Of what we earned,
And splurge a little,
On our selves.