Time

Another year is coming to an end

Another year will take its place

Life continues no matter what we do

Time drags us along

No matter how much kicking and screaming we do

It continues

Why do we waste so much time trying to control it?

Trying to deny it with plastic surgery

Always pursuing fantasies like the fountain of youth

Or eternal life

But this life was not meant to be eternal

It is precious, precisely because it is limited

So many people live their days

Abiding by social norms

Participating in accepted wastes of time

Disrespecting their time here

Until they find out that they are terminally ill

Then suddenly, they start to live fully?

You shouldn't need impending doom

To wake you up to the truth about life

To feel its precious gift

To want to live it to the fullest

To want to share your joy with others

And celebrate in theirs

Yet so many people wrap themselves in self-absorbed pursuits

Until the point of no return

Wasting minutes, hours, days, months and years in fruitless labors

Like self-pity, anger, hatred, fear, and mistrust

Things that only subtract from life

Ours and the lives of those around us

Why do we put so much emphasis on certain days

That when we are alone on them, we feel like lesser beings?

Is any day truly any different from the next

Other than what we make of it?

If you view a holiday as just another day

Do you not release the weight of social stigma?

Time is relative to our perception of it

If I am alone on New Years Eve

I am only a lesser man if I view myself that way

I am not a better man if I go out and get drunk

If I have nowhere worthy of going

I should be fine with being alone

Do we enhance ourselves by being slaves to time?

Why do we wear watches?

I no longer do and my life is freer because of it

We surround ourselves with reminders of time

And then we find so many ways to waste it

And so many ways to regret doing so

The last time I hung a calendar

It was not to know the date

But to see the picture my niece drew for it

The year, the month, the day did not matter

The substance of her imagination did

For it was a representation of her light

Creating is never a waste of time

Like my time spent writing this

Humans are pack animals

If we do not share our gifts, we waste them

When we share them, we shine

We create beautiful moments for others and ourselves

Learning is never a waste of time

If we stop learning, are we really alive?

Learning is growth, growth is living

A person who ceases to learn is more dead than alive

You can see them fading away

Lost in intransigent beliefs

Loving is never a waste of time

If we take our time to love ourselves

We can better love those around us

When we take time to love those around us

We make the world a better place

If we all did this, we would all be happier

So take these thoughts into the new year

Consider that each day

Is the first day of the rest of your life

It is no different from any other day

We can live it to the fullest

Simply by choosing to do so

by David Stein
12/31/2013
© 2013 by David Stein.  All rights reserved.

Soul Circles

I have been on the long journey to find myself

Little did I know that the real journey in life

Is not finding someplace new``

But rediscovering someplace old

We are born innocent and full of light

But we live in a world that can easily steal our light

And though I have found light throughout my life

I could never hold onto it

Because I was not at peace

And although, I think absolute peace may not exist

I have now found relative peace

A place where I do not need to scream at someone for cutting me off as I drive

Where I do not need to fret over lost or damaged possessions

Where my heart does not scream at rejection

And my strength does not wilt at the prospect

Where fighting the good fight is a reflex

Where helping others is its own reward

Where every problem has a solution rather than an excuse

Where calm pervades

Where patience is the overseer

And understanding is the guide

Where everyday is the first day of the rest of my life

And where the past is truly in the past

And does not reign over me

Or rain onto me

I have steered my ship through many storms of emotion

I have climbed over many mountains of fear

I have fought my demons and tamed them

And by doing so

I have found my way

Not to the end of a long road

But back to the beginning

My beginning

When my soul was pure

When I did not judge

When all I had to do to fly

Was fall asleep and dream

And when I dreamed

It was not of carnal pleasure

But of innocence and light

Of freedom and honor

And of romance and inner beauty

Yet now I stand in my birth-light having grown

Now I have the wisdom that staves off my weaknesses

Now I am equipped with insight instead of fear

Now I know myself

I know my faults and how to repair them

I know my fears and how to control them

I know my wants and how to pursue them

I know my needs

And I am strong enough to reach for them

I once read in a poem

That “there are men too gentle to live among wolves”

But I say that even the most gentle of men

Can learn to survive amongst wolves

And thrive

When he is true to his soul

And has the spirit to persevere

by David Stein
12/28/2013
© 2013 by David Stein.  All rights reserved.

Learning to Fly

Pushed towards so many cliffs over a lifetime

No matter what lays ahead

No matter how much fear I feel

I always manage to take the leap

And catch myself when I fall

With the help of my higher power

Sometimes I land hard

Leaving me feeling broken

Though the injuries are not physical

They often take a long time to heal

Perseverance and understanding are my friends

They will get me to my desired end

Now that I know myself better

The landings are softer

And take much less time to heal

It was not easy to get here

It is not easy to be here

It is a much better place than where I was

But someday

I will learn to fly

It is in my bones

It is in my soul

I will fly

I will fly

I don’t know when

I don’t know how

I just know I will

I know I will find a way

I will fly

I will fly

I will soar amongst the clouds

And relish in the sun’s warmth

I will sing of days gone by

And spread joy as I go

I will fly

I will fly

I will sing of brighter futures

I will share the paths I have found

I will teach others to fly

As I reach new heights

I will fly

I will fly

by David Stein 12/24/2013
© 2013 by David Stein.  All rights reserved.