Hear my Prayers

The rosary is heavy in my hand
Each new day the weight increases
Still, I pray
I try to concentrate on the mysteries
Sometimes I succeed, but often I fail
My Lord, You seem so far away from me
Have You abandoned your lowly servant?
Please my Lord, hear my prayers

Dark Times

These are dark times
You hear it out on the street
The marginals leave in droves
Their hearts weren't really into it
The faithful remain and march together with their beaded weapon in hand
Prayers are shouted from the rooftops
The darkness has only made them stronger

First Day of School

My little girl starts school today
When she was born I envisioned her wearing a smart uniform
It's discounts for her
Smiles so sweetly when I tell her how pretty she looks
Don't point out the stains or the tear in her dress
She opens her arms to me as I smooth out the wrinkles
We embrace each other
I pray the kids don't make fun of her dress

In a House

In a house filled with love and riches
A baby boy dies in his sleep
On the wrong side of town
A girl of only fourteen with tracks on her arm is taken to the hospital
Blood work shows heroin and a baby
Baby survives and is born via c-section
No love
No mother's touch
Only sterile hospitalization
From foster to foster she goes
Until she's put in a home with love
One dead baby
One fighting baby
Don't tell me God don't have a plan fr us

Out of a Job

Out of a job again
Cold air cuts through like a knife
Worn out coat
No gloves
Unless I make $60.00 by the 20th of the month
No heat
I walk home
Beggars on the street
Young girls who should be home with their mothers are offering themselves up
All night diners serving cheap food
It's a wonder we all don't get food poisoning
I shuffle past it all
A man calls out to me asking if I want a job
Easy money
I am tempted
I walk on and pray

Fill My Cup

I tried to take a sip of wine
But my cup was empty
At the feast, I see people getting their share
Yet my cup remains empty
Full of desperation
I cry out to the Lord
I have no wine, fill my cup
Patience
Is His response
Here I sit with cup in hand waiting for my Lord to fill it

Modern Knight

By day he fight evil

Armed with a taser and a badge

Sir and Ma’am all day long

By night he comes home to an empty house

It’ll be four day old day chili from a restaurant tonight

He dreams of peace, love, family

Past forty, will it ever come

Midnight comes too soon

In bed he clutches his rosary and prays

He prays for the same things each night

He wonders if it will ever come

Laughter

The thing I hate most, laughter
It stings my ears with mockery
When I was ten, I made up my mind to stop laughing
After two years of working on it I finally stopped laughing
With laughter out of my life
I learned that joy disappeared as well
One day in mass, sitting in front of me was a young mother
A mother with tattoos and ill advised attire
When her baby started getting fussy
She picked him up and laughed
Not a mocking laugh, but a joyful laugh
A laughter described at the birth of Isaac

Steps

Are you ready?
The word, ready, stings
I crosses an ocean to come to this land so that I could serve
Now all I want is a warm cup of tea and a soft bed
Anxiety sweeps over me as I look at the people
Sickly, desperate, hungry
I shut my eyes praying it will all go away
I can't do this
Mother walks over to me and puts her arms around me
One step at a time
That's how Our Lord carried the cross
One step at a time

Storm

I am on a boat
The waves crash
Lightning parts the sky
Thoughts turn to death
Lord, do you hear my pleas
Your child are crying out for help
No answer
Storm gets worse
Surely I will die
Just before lighting strikes the boat
Storm vanishes
Rainbow appears
A dove flies overhead

Formed

You formed me with purpose
A purpose I must figure out
At middle age I found myself still in this maze of life looking for a sign that reads purpose
My mind's imagination led me to believe it would be grand
The age of 42 brought with it a realization that I am small
As small as a grain of sand
My purpose, although small is to love
Do small acts with love
Find beauty in all around me
Give joyfully

Today

Today is the day
I know it
My face softens in a smile
Many around me have tears in their eyes
Why, I ask the Lord
For four months, I have been laying on this cot knowing this would end soon
My life was short
Full of hardship and heartaches
Begging for food to survive
These four months have been the most peaceful
I sleep under a real roof
I am fed and bathed each day
The ladies that take care of me greet me with the warmest smile
They teach me about Jesus
Today, I am smiling because today I know I will meet Him

Pay What You Can

Pay what you can
That's what the sign on the door read
He put in $5.00
The only thing he had in his pocket
If his wife were on his arm, she would have counciled against it
$5.00 for a talk by some priest
It wasn't her fault excitedly this lack of respect and trust in Catholic priests
She was raised in a Protestant church
What was done was done
The $5.00 went in the box and he took his seat
Warm faces greeted him
He shook clean hands as well as oil stained hands
The priest talked of love, trust,  forgiveness, and community
Words he needed to hear
He walked home to his wife and kids with the promise of a new job
If he had spent that money on beer, he would have walked home empty handed and drunk

Her Weapon

Street lights illuminated

Cold clings to your bones

The only ones outside those that have nowhere to go

Voices are heard above the wind

People wanting to make a quick buck

Others looking for shelter for the night

Some drunk are just angry at the world and the only way to release that pinned up rage is to fight

Up ahead, past George’s liquor store walks a lady

She’s old, frail

God bless you. God bless you

Her whispers are barely audible

Yet everyone knows what she said

She doesn’t stop to talk

Walking is her only mission

Wrapped around one hand is a rosary

Her weapon