A Pope for the Masses

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: POPE FRANCIS

 

A Pope for the Masses

 

The leader of an ancient church

A conscience to humankind

In humble heart we held him first

A unity of heart and mind

 

He opened up the pearly gates

When once those gates were chained

He criticized both church and state

Though his kindness never waned

 

His words spoke to all of us

The wicked, poor and feeble

He understood desire and lust

He drove a stake through evil

 

He spoke to all the masses

The hopeless and oppressed

The rich and lower classes

Every one of us was blessed

 

We’ll never see his like again

Of that we can be certain

To every soul he was a friend

He carried a heavy burden

 

(On the death of Pope Francis,

may he rest in peace.)

Fight Back

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: RESISTANCE

 

Fight Back

 

Never give up the fight

When the fight is in the making

Keep your enemy in sight

Take what’s for the taking

 

They will try to break your spirit

They’ll push you til you bend

They think you’ll come to fear it

They hope you won’t defend

 

Show them what you stand for

You’re the ones who will not quit

Keep knocking on that grand door

Until the victory light is lit

 

You may not always win

But you will always stand up proud

When you give the wheel a spin

Say it clear and say it loud:

 

We’ll fight against all odds

We’ll fight for all it’s worth

We’ll fight against the gods

And the beasts who rule the earth

 

Stand your Ground

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: LIFE SONGS

 

Stand your Ground

 

There are times to compromise

There are times to stand your ground

When all you hear are lies

To honor you are bound

 

Your principles should never bend

Or bow to greater force

While broken fences we should mend

Remember: stay the course

 

A compromise will never do

When it wounds your very soul

To yourself you must be true

You’ll find no other role

 

So suffer through the consequence

If that is what’s required

For that is what the wise one meant

Do not put out the fire

 

For we are what we stand for

Be it bad or be it good

We’ll open up or bar the door

According to what we should

 

Santiago Blackout

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: LIFE SONGS

 

Santiago Blackout

 

Where were you when the lights went out?

When the city lost all power

When the purest mind began to doubt

And the spirits ruled the hour

 

Men and women ran for cover

Children hid and cowered

Sweet Isabella lost her lover

When the spirits claimed the hour

 

And I was but a passing ship

Tossed out to the seven seas

I felt the earth beneath me slip

And I thought this cannot be

 

We were cast into the deepest dark

We were captured by a spell

This failing leaves a lasting mark

A moment spent in hell

 

We will never find our way back home

To the place we left behind

The truth is that we’re all alone

With the ghosts that haunt our minds

 

Sanity

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: LIFE SONGS

Sanity

 

Hold on to your sanity

When the world is slipping into madness

Do not yield to your vanity

When the world is drowned in sadness

 

For we are not the center

Nor are we at the core

When the world descends to hellish grief

We are not the reasons for

 

In a world of gloom and horror

The sullen one is king

In a town of scream and shudder

The quiet one can sing

 

We have lost our equilibrium

We are reaching out for kindness

The ones who guide our passing

Are lost in moral blindness

 

If you want a world of sanity

Know that it begins at home

Take pity on humanity

For we are not alone

 

Murder on Bourbon Street

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: LIFE SONGS

Murder on Bourbon Street

 

What kind of horror is this?

What kind of madness moved him?

With malice and murder aforethought

To trigger a chain of vengeance

To release a river of blood

To light the match of endless fire

When will it ever end?

 

Don’t tell us it’s the work of God

This is the deed of evil men

This is the depths of darkness

This is the hollow of despair

 

I have walked down Bourbon Street

In the city of the crescent moon

It is a place that embraces all

The diverse joys of life

A place to leave your trouble behind

Where love and wonder rise

In song and celebration

 

What kind of madness chooses

This time and place of jubilation

To execute an act of murder

Of cold-blooded deprivation

A vengeful act of inhumanity

To thrust this world into

An endless chain of terror?

 

When will it end?

When will we finally put down

The book of vengeance

And pick up the book of kindness?

 

Spirits of Christmas

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: LIFE SONGS

Spirits of Christmas

 

The spirit of Christmas is giving

We celebrate with revelry

As long as we are living

We will decorate our tree

 

Unless of course we’re homeless

Or destitute and poor

Cursed with desperate loneliness

Then Christmas is no more

 

A holiday of majesty

A time of grace and cheer

Good fortune turns to tragedy

Our wonders turn to fear

 

So let us all be grateful

For the bounty we can share

As we enjoy our plateful

Let all know that we care

 

For the spirits are alive

Every day and every year

The giving spirit thrives

In all that we hold dear

 

The Cathedral (Notre Dame)

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: LIFE SONGS

The Cathedral

 

She rises from the ashes

All our hearts must overflow

The tears we shed in sorrow

In pure joy we now let go

 

A monument to human grace

At the core of western civilization

A tribute to artistic achievement

At the heart of the French nation

 

She stands now for our resilience

The stubborn loyalty of our race

We refuse to yield to memories

The sacred beauty of this place

 

Notre Dame stands once again

Where she will stand for all time

Beyond the glory of mortal men

Beyond the beauty of all rhyme

 

She is the ultimate of our being

She is the heartbeat of our song

We hear her dancing and singing

And we must dance and sing along

 

(Re: Jean-Louis Georgelin 1948 – 2023)

 

Reaching for Gratitude (Thanksgiving)

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: LIFE SONGS

Reaching for Gratitude

 

In the overwhelming times

Of dread and disappointment

The relentless days of gray

The dismal nights of longing

The endless drone of mourning

We extend our wanting arms

Our open palms of yearning

The simple grace of gratitude

 

I am grateful for the autumn bloom

Of bright and glowing colors

The oranges of Hieronymus Bosch

The sunsets of Maxfield Parrish

The colors of enlightenment

The forever changing earth

 

I am grateful for the friendships

I have built over the years

The ones who never turn away

Despite the madness or the tears

 

I am grateful for my family

What greater fortune can there be?

The warm embrace of family bonds

The strength of the family tree

 

I am grateful for good tidings

That warm our worried hearts

That single promise of forever

We will never be apart

 

I am grateful for so many things

Far beyond my reach or touch

For all the things that give me hope

I confess it’s all too much

 

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Olympian Values

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: LIFE SONGS

Olympian Values

 

Watching the American Olympic team

I am reminded of our virtue

We are a diverse lot

People of all shapes and sizes

Colors and distinctions

Black, white, yellow and brown

Blend in a tapestry of excellence

We are America!

USA! USA! USA!

What others consider weakness

Has always been our strength

We exemplify the Olympic spirit

We bring it all to life

The Olympics bring together

Athletes from around the globe

Dedicated to the brotherhood of competition

Committed to crowning glory

Without regard to race or culture

We are the world

We are the Olympic spirit

We are its diversity, its excellence and its wonder

USA! USA! USA!

Never lose sight of those values

Hold on to the dream

 

Paris Olympics

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: LIFE SONGS

Paris Olympics

 

The heart of the western world is Paris

It cannot be denied

The greatness of London and Berlin

Is known far and wide

Amsterdam and Prague

Have many on their side

But that Paris is the very heart

Cannot be denied

 

The host of the Olympics

As gracious as can be

The majesty of the Eiffel Tower

The wealth of Champs Elysees

The Palace of the Invalids

The glory of the Seine

The pyramid of the Louvre

The famed Musee d’Orsay

There is no place like Paris

On this or any day

 

The Olympics brings its grandeur

Paris gives its charm

Combined it is a spectacle

The most glorious of stars

To win the gold in Paris

The silver or the bronze

Would bring a rare panache

Perhaps a poem or a song

 

Don't Swim in the Seine

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: RIVER SERIES

Swimming in the Seine

 

There are many things that you can do

Like singing in the rain

Like driving down a lonely road

Or strolling down a country lane

You can take a trip to Iceland

You can spend some time in Spain

You can say or do a million things

And do them once again

But you can’t swim in the Seine

 

For the river is a toxic stew

It would surely make you ill

You might survive the poisoning

If you take a magic pill

You might do it if you dared

But the wiser will refrain

There’s a world of awe in Paris

It’s a place where one has been

But don’t swim in the Seine

 

You can walk down Champs Elysees

You can visit Musee d’Orsay

Bow down before the Arc de Triomphe

Pay your respect to Notre Dame

You cannot miss la Tour Eiffel

Nor the grace of Pere Lachaise

The Louvre is filled with wonders

You can share them with a friend

But you can’t swim in the Seine

 

Day of Change

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: GLOBAL WARMING

Day of Change

 

What will we do when the lights go out?

When the grid no longer holds?

Will we find a place to hide away?

Or has our refuge since been sold?

 

What will we do when the lakes go dry?

When the rivers no longer flow?

Will we steal away our water supply?

Will we pack our bags and go?

 

A day of change is coming

We can feel it in the air

The ties that bind have come undone

It is much too much to bear

 

Will we sacrifice our decency?

Our sense of right and wrong?

Will we cast aside our dignity?

Have we known it all along?

 

That day of change is coming

The pounding of the sun

Best settle in the best we can

There is no place to run

 

Heat Rises

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: GLOBAL WARMING

Heat Rises

 

Heat rises

Let it rise

Let there be no alibis

Follow the stars as the crow flies

Heat rises

Let it rise

 

We have endured a thousand trials

We will endure a thousand more

And we have walked a thousand miles

Just to open up this door

 

Heat rises

Let it rise

Let us see through hollow lies

Take it in and breathe a sigh

Heat rises

Let it rise

 

We will take it all in stride

Every hardship in our way

And we will find the other side

We will play it as it lays

 

Heat rises

Let it rise

Let there be no alibis

Fools fall, embrace the wise

Heat rises

Let it rise

 

The Healing

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: GLOBAL WARMING

The Healing

 

There’s a shadow moving across the land

A great cloud of dust and sorrow

Everywhere it goes the people fall

And pray for rain tomorrow

To wash away this evil spell

This sickness of the soul

Some say it is the will of god

An undoing of the whole

 

But what god is so spiteful?

A god of ruin and disease

We need a god of healing

A god of mercy if you please

 

We know it is the work of man

And not the work of heaven

This scourge across a barren land

The horrors come in seven

Pestilence and drought

Fire, wind and thunder

Wars that never ever end

Waves that take us under

 

Pray for the great healing

No matter who or where you are

Pray to the god you know

Pray to the healing star

 

Memorial

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: LIFE SONGS

Memorial

 

We remember the soldiers

who gave their lives

for a cause that’s never certain

 

Some wars are righteous and necessary

Other wars are fought for greed

Even the good wars cannot be good

on both sides of the line

 

We remember all the soldiers

for their bravery and honor though

some were neither brave nor honorable

 

The loss is as severe for all

the soldiers and civilians caught

in the crossfire of war

 

We remember them and honor them

for they could well be us

We too would want to be remembered

We too would want to be honored

 

So we give them a day and remember them

We give them a day and pray their

lives were not given in vain

 

For all lives are precious

All lives should be remembered

All should be honored

 

We remember the dead for the living

We remember the living for the dead