GIVING LIFE TO LIFE
Will bring rewards over time
In wonder filled ways 

A GENTLE PERSON 
Is always admired
Whether so from birth or acquired

BY WORLDLY ACTIONS 
Affecting others
One immortilizes himself 

THE "HOW" AND THE "WHY" 
Of life and living
Can lead only to God

AT ALL TIMES THROUGH THICK AND THIN
Getting on with fife
As with a close friend 

RISE ABOVE THE CROWD 
See the great expanse 
Beyond the deafening din 

TRAUMATIZED BY PAIN
Mesmerized by death
Life can change for the better

WHEN PLAYING WITH FIRE 
Caution is required
Not to be consumed by it

THE MIND IS NOT INTENDED
To go round and round...
A revolving door

TO WELCOME EACH DAY
As if it were the last one
It may well be so

AS LONG AS ONE LIVES
Facing life bravely
Despite all that may occur 

A FAMILY TREE 
A curiosity
Of relative value 

SHOWING VANITY 
Is self fooler
By self undetectable 

TO HELP ANOTHER 
Going beyond self 
Is a privilege

LISTEN TO YOUR HEART
Without words it communicates
Affirmations of life

NOT TO WAIT FOR PAIN
One can become spiritual 
For better living

ONE'S BODY LANGUAGE
Can readily contradict
What one has spoken

HE IS A "BIG MAN"
Is not about looks
It's his generous spirit 

DISCOURAGING ANOTHER
INCLINED TO DO GOOD
IS BAD BEHAVIOR 

MYSTICAL WISDOM
Is given to very few
Who are specially blessed

ONE'S OUTER TRANSFORMATION 
Results from aging
Not so one's inner

REACHING FOR THE STARS
Is a metaphor
To know the Unknowable

QUESTIONS NO ANSWERS
Confusion and fear
Until one believes in God

CHECKING OUT A DREAM 
What is meant by it
One can only speculate 

ONE'S VISION OF THE FUTURE
Is speculation
With nothing at stake 

TO CONTROL THE TONGUE 
When another is involved
No more to be said

IN DAILY LIVING 
Acquitting one's self
Should not be an obsession 

ENJOY EACH MOMENT 
Irrespective of content 
Until one is no more 

TRYING TO HOLD ON TO TIME
Is a fantasy
Born out of ego

ENABLING SOMEONE
To do a good deed
Is truly ennobling him 

DESPITE ITS HARDSHIPS
To celebrate life
By living it heartily

SACRIFICE REFLECTS
Recognition of the need 
To live one's values

THE HUMAN EXPERIENCE
Cannot be compared
Each one is unique

I SPIN THOUGHT FROM WORDS
Weave them into cloth
Hoping they may comfort and warm

LOOKING BACK ON LIFE
Remembering the good times 
Letting all else go 

AT A LOSS FOR WORDS
When it comes to life
One must live it to know it 

AT ANY TIME IN ONE'S LIFE
A simple insight 
Can be life changing

TO BECOME HUMBLE
Being shown the way 
Is better than being told

FIGHTING WITH ONE'S DESTINY
With no chance to win
Is self defeating

MORE THAN A CLICHE 
Tender loving care
Tends to nurture healthy growth

A SMILE OR A WORD
Can create an atmosphere 
Of warm friendliness 

THE YEARNING TO LOVE 
Is as irrepressible
As is one's breathing

LET US PLAY LIKE CHILDREN
No distractions
By what comes next

THE SHARING OF WORDS
Cannot be compared 
To a mutual embrace

AS ONE GROWS OLDER 
Trying to simplify life
Is a common quest 

MY GARDEN CONTAINS
An assortment of flowers
Some unwanted seeds

IN MY MIND'S GARDEN
I'm even more selective
In what I let grow

BORN OF THE PAST
The pregnant moment
Carries in it the future

BY LEGAL DECREE
The sun is set in its place
One hour earlier

IN THE SEA OF LIFE
Let go, trust the buoyancy 
Then may you swim well 

TO THINK ONE CAN BORROW TIME
Is a delusion 
Flowing from ego

BEING EFFECTIVE 
Requires being involved 
In active living

TO CELEBRATE LIFE
Not on special occasions 
But every moment 

DESPITE DENIAL
BEING HELD BY ONE'S EGO
IS BEYOND QUESTION

FOR MY GREATER GOOD
I submerge concerns
Generated by my mind

HOPING AND PRAYING
They will not rise up again
I'll be free for good 

NO PASSING FANCY
Being religious
Is a life-long love affair

THE WILL TO SURVIVE 
BROUGH INTO ONE'S CONSCIOUSNESS
CAN OVERCOME All 

SEEING THE HUMOR
In worldlv matters
Makes for a jolly good life

MAN'S MORAL TEACHINGS
Are not abstractions
To be waved at from afar 

SEE LIFE IN PERSPECTIVE 
Reflect for a while
On its differences ·

OFFERING CRITICISM 
Is not warranted
Unless one means help

HAVING LOFTY IDEAS
Will help elevate 
Even the lowly

LIFE IS NOT A GAME
Nevertheless there are rules
For better results

A STROKE OF MY PEN 
Captures a moment
Otherwise forever lost

I OBSERVE MY THOUGHTS
As they come and go 
To stop a negative flow

BEDEVILING THE MIND 
Is the mind itself
Beware of its treachery 

A MORAL FABLE
Relates a story
With telling consequences

COUNTLESS MESSAGES 
Issued from on high
Life cannot be understood

TO TURN INWARDLY
Does not involve any movement 
That is visible 

HAVING WORLDLY CARES
Is everybody's lot 
All the time aware of God

MAKING A DAY COUNT
Requires accounting
For personal behavior

BAD - BUT NOT THAT BAD
Good - but not that good 
Accomodating the world

THOUGH SOME BACKSLIDING 
Progressing spiritually
As only I know 

WHEN FEELING ANXIOUS 
Some invoke superstition
Exposing their fears

NO OUTSIDE EXCUSE
Befits a grown man 
For his sorry behavior

BLIND PARTISANSHIP
Calls for repudiation
Clearly and firmly 

A PREREQUISITE
For helping others 
Is to be whole in one's self 

ENTERING THE MIND
Are many unwanted thoughts 
See them for what they are

PERFECTING THE WORLD
Not by revolution
But by patience ond love

EVERY DAY PRESENTS 
A new chance to separate
Oneself from staidness

TO LIVE JOYFULLY 
Savor each moment
As a draft of vintage wine 

ALL TIMES LIGHT HEARTED 
Never light headed
Allows for sure footedness

KEEPING VIGILANT
Day, night, at all time
intercept hostile thoughts 

THINKING BACK ON LIFE
That goes by so fast,
Does take more than a moment 

EATING HUMBLE PIE
To initiate
Healing and a moral life

EMOTIONAL TIES
Are sometimes stronger
Than the strongest sailor's knot

TO FIND THE COURAGE
To break out of convention 
Is a rarity

ONE'S PERSONAL AGENDA 
Needs to be reviewed
If it can be done

THE SIX MORTAL ENEMIES* 
FLEE THEM LIKE THE PLAGUE 
FEAR THEM EVEN MORE 

* ENVY, GREED, ANGER, LUST, LAZINESS, CYNICISM

ENTER LIFE'S AMUSEMENT PARK
Pay now or later
Later is much more

COMING TO GRIPS WITH OLD AGE
Man's greatest challenge
Done with a stout heart 

NOTHING EARTH SHAKING
For someone life enhancing 
Giving charity

EXAMINING MY MOTIVE
As I go along
Is it born of love?

GIVING TO THE POOR
Is more than philanthropy 
It is Salvation

HARNESSING THE MIND
To bring it under control
When it runs away

EGO TELL-TALE SIGNS
When it runs amuck
Can be sadness and despair 

CONSIDERATION
When shown to others
Reflects more than good manners

GETTING ON WITH LIFE
ACCEPTING WHAT IS
EVER WITH JOY IN ONE'S HEART

 Portal - AlKrassner's email- alkrassner@aol.com