“The Art of Life”

Poem of the Day, Thursday, November 9, 2023

“The Art of Life”

Growing old tends to make one reflect
on the past, the present,
the upcoming future.
It is no wonder that people panic,
feel they have wasted their lives.

When you really analyze it,
put pen to paper
or fingers to keyboard
and write the things,
even the simple ones,
that you are proud of,
see as your accomplishments,
or those that make you happy,
it will truly amaze you,
maybe even surprise you.

You can assess your choices,
good and bad,
review the twists and turns
of your life, knowing full well
that many were good,
propelling you to do the things
you were supposed to, needed to.

Granted, there are things
that frost us, cause some pain
and, perhaps, a bit of shame,
but those are in the past,
not worth dredging up
or opening wounds again,
especially if you have worked 

through them and have healed.

Yet, when we think
of the positive things,
we smile, tears fall unabashedly,
feelings of happiness wash over us.

At that moment, we understand
that our past created us,
allowed us to become
artists in the art of life,
creating, composing, learning,
absorbing, changing, and becoming
better, kinder, and more self-aware
each day, knowing
that our choices made us
who and whose we are.

Yes, we have done well.
Still, there is more to come.
Our past will propel us
to the future so we can live
each day more selflessly.

"Chasing Sunsets"

Poem of the Day, Wednesday, November 8, 2023

"Chasing Sunsets"

There is a powerful extravagance in sunsets.
Some linger longer, spilling deep gold,
orange, and black rays and spreading stunningly
across the western highline, stretching its exquisiteness,
hoping, just hoping, the earth will stop
for a few more seconds so they can spread
their resplendent colors like a giant peacock
with a horizon for wings, waiting for an encore.

Other sunsets are bold for a blink of an eye,
and you must be there to capture
their beauty and magnificence.
Often, I sit and wait for them,
so they do not sneak upon me
like my brothers used to
after doing late chores in the winter.

At dusk, the sun glides gracefully across the sky,
disappearing surreptitiously behind globs
of dark gray clouds, a few wispy white ones,
and then dropping precipitously, lower and lower,
perhaps a bit reticent, unpretentious at first.

Yet just before it slouches behind the mountain
and beyond the horizon, it flashes,
radiant deep oranges, yellows, blacks,
browns, and other mixtures of radiant colors,
cascading across the horizon,
embellishing everything around it
and casting a view of splendor
on another stage on the east mountains.

For a few brief moments, we bask 

in its glory and momentous beauty,

and then, it is gone, leaving a few tailings
of grandeur and grandness to dally just bit
longer to entice us to stay each evening
when it will return again and shower us
with another majestic array of magnificence!

“Perspective”

Poem of the Day, Tuesday, November 7, 2023

“Perspective” 

It’s really about perspective,
aligning yours, mine, his,
hers, theirs, ours, etc.

My perspective is different
and still acceptable if you look
at the things I have accomplished
along the way in my long life.

I grew in the country, had chores,
early mornings, cold days, cows,
chickens, pigs, horses to feed,
lawns to mow and snow to shovel,
and a father who was adamant
about doing chores early
and being on time.

He had more work for us
when we complained.
His method of discipline was old-school
and would not be approved today.
Yet, it worked for us.

I learned much about paying attention,
working hard, knowing I could
do lots of things on my own.
I didn’t complain much
because it didn’t do any good.
Just plowed forward, doing,
improving, and doing more.

Now, when I see others not doing
the same things and moaning
about doing simple things
and not having this or that
or playing on phones and video games,
wasting time like time is nothing,

I see it from my perspective:
Pay attention. Be anticipatory.
Just do what needs to be done.
Quit moaning! Work. Learn.
Move forward! Go and do—
All with a dose or two
of kindness and compassion!

Lifelong Learning

Poem of the Day, Monday, November 6, 2023

"Lifelong Learning"

I have discovered along the way
that life is all about learning,
not just schoolbooks, degrees,
parchment, and such.
It’s really about learning to learn,

learning how to change,
and then changing what we should have
learned and learn just a bit more.
For some, learning stops
at the end of college,

those fateful days
in May or December
or whenever someone hands you
a diploma or certificate,
when you line up in caps and gowns,

wait our turn for our three seconds
on podium and then off we go
into a world we really know little about.
In actuality, if you take notes,
it’s just the beginning

of real learning, real practice,
real time, and real application.
Lifelong learning enhances us, provides us
with methods to see more clearly
and profoundly and a way

to elevate our own being
in so many innovative situations.
It includes a sense of achievement
of knowing you really can learn more
than you can ever imagine.

Life is all about learning things.
Knowledge oozes out of every corner
and crack in our lives during good
and challenging times.
Often it just seeps by us, ready for us

to just reach out and grab some,
or hangs from luscious baskets
within our reach,
but often we do not take advantage
of the proliferation of learning new things.

Perhaps, now is the time to begin
anew, sense the newness around us—
in the air, on the street, at our job,
at church, and within our families.
Learning is an investment,

yielding high benefits and interest
and no recession ever.
Invest now and often
and keep your bank account growing.
Every. Single. Day.

"Sundays are Special"

Poem of the Day, Sunday, November 5, 2023

"Sundays are special"

Sundays are special—
When we know the reason why.
When we recognize our worth
and our divine nature!
When we ponder and reflect
upon our many blessings.
When we experience
the sacredness of the Sacrament,
each torn piece of bread
and cup of water, symbols of His Son
who was torn and broken
and who bled from every pore
for each of us.
As we sing the hymns of Sunday
that teach us doctrine and eternal truths.
As peace and comfort distill upon us
like the dews from Heaven.
As we feel the love of our Heavenly Father
enveloping us, touching our very souls,
especially when we feel
down and despondent, lifting us
from the abyss of darkness
through His Son’s infinite Atonement
that wipes away our tears,
soothes our fears,
and teaches us to hear Him,
His soft and tender voice,
always lifting,
always calming,
always filling us
with love, compassion, and mercy.
Still, we have to obey,
do what He asks, live like He did,
love others, strive with all our might,
and minister to all—
surely a small price to pay
to live with Him
and our eternal family
forever!

"Finding Solace"

Poem of the Day, November 4, 2023--"Finding Solace"

"Finding Solace"

It’s a shame to realize that the loudness
and cruelty of world pound us
from every corner of the earth today
and surrounds us with the thickness of dread.
Often, we think there is no safe place

where we can feel solace and peace.
I stay away from the news, hoping
I will not be singed or even burned
by the ugliness and pervasiveness of it all.
Instead, I seek solace in the usual places—

on the beach, listening the waves lap
against the gray sands, retreating,
and beginning again, never tiring
of the push and pull of seeping sand;
or sauntering through the forest and trees,

feeling the softness of the debris of leaves
as I walk along, listening intently
to the sounds of life all around me;
or maybe just sitting in my room, reading,
studying, hearing the tick of the old clock

that Dad made from a stump.
For me, the best place for solace is sitting
and contemplating in the Lord’s House,
the temple, where the Spirit distills it
throughout every room as lights beam brightly,

enlightening my mind and soul,
allowing solace and peace
to encompass me in eternal bliss.
For those brief and tender moments,
I feel I am in my real world,

from which I came and must return.
It is here in the House of the Lord
where we learn to listen to and learn
about solace, surround ourselves with it,
and then share it with others

until they, too, can feel the challenges
of the world weave their way out,
dissipating into the quietness of night,
finally filling them with soothing solace
they deserve and have felt before.

 

"The Profundity of Simplicity"

Poem of the Day 3, Friday, November 3, 2023

"The Profundity of Simplicity"


It’s odd when you really think about it—
the profundity of simplicity.
Most things in life reek
of a ephemerality and shallowness,
non-starters from the beginning.

People seem to be ever learning
but never arriving at the truth
about the simplicity of life.

They draw the things of the world
too close in their line of vision,
thus obstructing simplicity.

They make things too hard
as they overthink
even the simplest of tasks.

No wonder our lives careen
out of control because the simple
has been too distorted, too garbled,
for even simple contemplation.

Simplicity allows us to move forward,
unfettered with the overwhelmingness
of life’s challenges that engulf us
forcing us to spend far more time packing,
unpacking, and repacking non-essentials
and stuffing them away, hoarding them,
instead of shedding them forever.

It is past time to seek the simplicity
of life that will ultimately produce
a profound sense of becoming and being
seeing with utmost clarity.

Darrel L. Hammon