Poems to help ease your soul

I hope that the following quotes will bring to you the comfort and inner peace that they have brought to me. Many of them are favourites of mine and of people who are special to me and mine.
If only one of these quotes can be to you as an oasis in the desert in which you presently find yourself, this page will have done what it set out to do.
~ Arnold Start ~
This page is dedicated to the memory of Arnold Start

A Hopi Prayer

Do not stand at my grave and weep I am not there,
I do not sleep; 
I am a thousand winds that blow. 
I am the diamond glint on the snow; 
I am the sunlight on ripened grain; 
I am the gentle rain.
When you waken in the morning's hush 
I am the swift uplifting rush of quiet birds in circled flight. 
I am the soft stars that shine at night.
Do not stand at my grave. 
I am not there. 
I did not die.
For everything beautiful that you see 
will bring a memory of me.

The Ten Commandments for Cancer Survival:

Thou shalt regard the word "Cancer" as exactly that: a word. Nothing more, nothing less. For it's original meaning has changed mightily over the years, as have such words as Smallpox, TB, and Polio, all once dreaded ailments, now non-existent as maladies. And thus, too, shalt go thy Cancer. The answer shall come to those who shall be present to hear it. Be present to hear it when it comes.

Thou shalt love thy chemotherapy, thy radiation, and thy other treatments even as thyself, for they are thy friends and champions. Although they may exact a toll for their endeavours, they are oft most generous in the favours they bestow.

Thou shalt participate fully in thy recovery. Thou shalt learn all the details of thy ailment, it's diagnosis, it's prognosis, it's treatments, conventional and alternative. Thou shalt discuss them openly and candidly with thy oncologist and shalt question all that thou do not comprehend. Then, thou shalt cooperate intelligently and knowledgeably with thy doctor.
Thou shalt regard thy ailment as a temporary detour in thy life and shalt plan thy future as though this detour had not occurred. Thou shalt never, at no time, nohow, regard thy temporary ailment as permanent. Thou shalt set long-term goals for thyself. For thou will verily recover and your believing so will contribute mightily to thy recovery.
Thou shalt express thy feelings candidly and openly to thy loved ones for they, too, are stricken. Thou shalt comfort and reassure them for they, too, needest comforting and reassurance, even as thou doest.

Thou shalt be a comfort to thy fellow-cancerites, providing knowledge, encouragement, understanding and love. You shalt give them hope where there may be none, for only in hope lies their salvation. And by doing so, thou providest comfort for thyself, as well.

 Thou shalt never relinquish hope, no matter how thou mayest feelest at that moment, for thou knowest, in the deep recesses of thy heart, that your discouragement is but fleeting and that a better day awaits thee, perhaps tomorrow, perhaps the day after tomorrow.

Thou shalt not regard thy ailment as the sum total of thy life but as merely a part of it. Fill your life with other diversions, be they mundane, daring, altruistic, or merely amusing. To fill your life with your ailment is to surrender to it.

Thou shalt maintain, at all times and in all circumstances, thy sense of humour, for laughter lightens thy heart and hastens thy recovery. This is not an easy task, sometimes seemingly impossible, but it is a goal well worth the endeavour.

Thou shalt have enduring and unassailable faith, whether thy faith be in a Supreme Being, in Medical Science, in Thy Future, in Thyself, or in Whatever. Steadfastly sustain thy faith for it shall sustain thee.

Paul H Klein

All is well

Death is nothing at all. 
I have only slipped away into the next room. 
I am I, and you are you. 
Whatever we were to each other, that we still are. 
Call me by my old familiar name, 
speak to me in the easy way which you always used. 
Put no difference in your tone, 
wear no forced air of solemnity or sorrow. 
Laugh as we always laughed at the little jokes we enjoyed together. 
Pray, smile, think of me, pray for me. 
Let my name be ever the household word that it always was, 
let it be spoken without effect, 
without the trace of a shadow on it. 
Life means all that it ever meant. 
It is the same as it ever was; 
there is unbroken continuity. 
Why should I be out of mind because I am out of sight?
I am waiting for you, 
for an interval, 
somewhere very near, 
just round the corner.
All is well.

Henry Scott Holland 1847-1918
Canon of St. Paul's Cathedra

THE SUN-DIAL AT WELLS COLLEGE

The shadow of my finger cast 
Divides the future from the past:
Before it, sleeps the unborn hour
In darkness, and beyond thy power:
Behind its unreturning line,
The vanished hour, no longer thine:
One hour alone is in thy hands, -
The NOW on which the shadow stands.

Henry Van Dyke (1904)

The Weaver

My life is but a weaving Between my Lord and me;
I cannot choose the colours, He worketh steadily.
Oft-times He weaveth sorrow,
And I, in foolish pride
forget He sees the upper,
And I the under side.
Not till the loom is silent
And the shuttles cease to fly,
Shall God unroll the canvas
And explain the reason why.
The dark threads are as needful,
In the Weaver's skillful hand,
As the threads of gold and silver
In the pattern he has planned.
He knows, He loves, He cares -
Nothing this truth can dim;
He gives the very best to those
Who leave the choice with Him.

HOMECOMING

by Sister Joan Metzner, mm
I believe there is Someone waiting for me, Waiting to say :
" Welcome Home ! "Someone I have never seen, but whom I will recognize in the depths of my heart because He has lived there since the beginning of time.
Someone who has never doubted my return,
never failed to still my doubts about my return.
I believe there is Someone who knows me so intimately,
loves me so totally, that joy will spark spontaneously
when we reunite in the land of immortal Birth.
Tears will be wiped away;
Sadness and fear will disappear as mist when it meets the morning sun.
This is whom I seek, seeks me.
He has never left me alone.
For He is Self of my self,
Soul of my soul,
Life of my very life.

Look to this day,
For yesterday is but a dream,
And tomorrow is only a vision,
But today, well lived,
Makes every yesterday a dream of happiness,
And every tomorrow a vision of hope.
Look well, therefore, to this day.
 
Sanskrit Proverb

Love

is giving with no thought of getting. It is tenderness enfolding with strength to protect. It is forgiveness without further thought of the thing forgiven. It is understanding of human weakness, with knowledge of the true man shining through. It is quiet in the midst of turmoil. It is trust in God with no thought of self. It is the one altogether lovely, the light in the mother's eyes, the glory in the sacrifice, the quiet assurance of protection.

It is in the expectation of our Father's promise coming true. It is the refusal to see anything but good in our fellow man. It is the glory that comes with selflessness and the power that comes with assurance of the Father's love for His Children. It is the voice that says "no" to our brother, though "yes" might be more easily said. It is resistance to the world's lust and greed, thus becoming a positive law of annihilation to error.

Love ... the one thing no one can take from us ... the one thing we can give constantly and become increasingly rich in the giving. Love can take no offence, for it cannot know that which it does not of itself conceive. It cannot hurt or be hurt, for it is the purest reflection of GOD, Good. It is the one eternal, indestructible force for Good. It is the will of GOD, preparing, planning, proposing always what is best for all His universe.

Anonymous

KATRINA'S SUN-DIAL

Hours fly, Flowers die:
New days, New ways, Pass by !
Love stays.
Time is Too slow for those who Wait, Too swift for those who Fear,
Too long for those who Grieve, Too short for those who Rejoice,
But for those who Love,
Time is not.

Henry Van Dyke

Let each day be so fashioned as though it were closing the line of days and completely fulfilling life.
If then, GOD grants us the morrow, let us accept it with a happy heart.
Seneca

DESIDERATA

Go placidly amid the noise and haste and remember what peace there may be in silence.
As far as possible without surrender be on good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly and listen to others - even the dull and ignorant. They too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons for they are vexatious to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others you may become vain and bitter, for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.
Keep interested in your own career however humble. It is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time. Exercise caution in your business affairs for the world is full of trickery. But let not this blind you to what virtue there is. Many persons strive for high ideals and everywhere life is full of heroism.
Be yourself, especially do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love; for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment, it is as perennial as the grass.
Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth. Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness. Beyond a wholesome discipline be gentle with yourself.
You are a child of the Universe no less than the trees and stars. You have a right to be here, and whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the Universe is unfolding as it should.
Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be, and whatever your labours and aspirations in the noisy confusion of life - keep peace with your soul.
With all its shame, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world.
Be careful.

Strive to be happy

Max Ehrmann (1872–1945)

"Our attitude to all men would be Christian if we regarded them as though they were dying and determined our relation to them in the light of death, both of their death and our own.
A person who is dying calls for a special kind of feeling. Our attitude to him is at once softened and lifted onto a higher plane. We can then feel compassion for people whom we do not love.
But every man is dying, I too am dying and must never forget about death."
Nikolai Berdyaev

I Love You

Not only for what you are, but for what I am when I'm with you,
I Love You
For the part of me that you bring out,
I Love You
For putting your hand into my heaped-up heart
and passing over all the foolish, weak things
that you can't help dimly seeing there,
and for drawing out into the light
all the beautiful belongings that no one else
had looked quite far enough to find.
I Love You
because you are helping me to
make of the lumber of my life not a tavern but a temple;
out of the works of my every day not a reproach,
but a song . . . . .
Anonymous

Ah, Fill the cup :

What boots it to Repeat how time is Slipping under our feet :
Unborn TOMORROW,
And dead YESTERDAY
Why fret about them If TODAY Be sweet !!
Omar Khayyam

The Irish Blessing

May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind be always at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
The rain fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again,
May GOD hold you
in the palm of His hand.

Better never trouble trouble
Until trouble troubles you.
For you only make your trouble
Double trouble when you do.
And your trouble like a bubble
That you're troubling about,
May be nothing but a cypher,
With the rim rubbed out.

 David Keppel

There is an Eye that never sleeps,
beneath the wind of night.
There is an Ear that never shuts,
When sinks the beam of light.
There is an Arm that never tires,
When human strength gives way.
There is a Love that never fails,
When earthly loves decay.

George Mathewson

Finish every day and be done with it. 
You have done what you could. 
Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; 
forget them as soon as you can. 
Tomorrow is a new day; begin it well and serenely and with too high a spirit to be cumbered with your old nonsense. 
This day is all that is good and fair. 
It is too dear, with it's hopes and invitations, 
to waste a moment on the yesterdays.

Ralph Waldo Emmerson

Persist

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,
When the road you're trudging seems all up hill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit,
Rest, if you must - but don't you quit.
Life is queer with it's twists and turns,
As every one of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about,
When he might have won had he stuck it out,
Don't give up, though the pace seems slow ..
You might succeed with another blow.
Often the goal is nearer than
It seems to a faint and faltering man.
Often the struggler has given up,
When he might have captured the victor's cup,
And her learned too late, when the night slipped down,
How close he was to the golden crown.
Success is failure turned inside out.
The silver tint to the clouds of doubt -
And you can never tell how close you are,
It mat appear when it seems afar;
So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit -
It when things seem worst that you mustn't quit !

Anonymous

Everything that happens
  and everything that befalls us has a meaning,
But it is often difficult to recognize it.
Also in the book of life every page has two sides:
We human beings fill the upper side with our plans, hopes, and wishes,
But Providence writes on the other side,
And what it ordains is seldom our goal.
Nisami

To Those I Love

If I should ever leave you
To go along the silent way, grieve not,
Nor speak of me with tears, but laugh and talk
Of me as if I were beside you there.
(I'd come - I'd come, could I but find a way!
But would not tears and grief be barriers?)
And when you hear a song or see a bird
I loved, please do not let the thought of me
Be sad .. For I am loving you just as I always have .
You were so good to me!
There are so many things I wanted still
To do - so many things to say to you .
Remember that I did not fear . it was
Just leaving you that was so hard to face .
We cannot see beyond . But this I know:
I loved you so - `twas heaven here with you!

Isla Paschal Richardson

A thing of beauty is a joy forever;
Its loveliness increases;
It will never pass into nothingness;
But still will keep
A bower quiet for us, and a sleep
Full of sweet dreams, and health,
And quiet breathing.

Keats

The question  
for each man to settle 
is not what he would do if he had
means, time, influence, and educational advantages,
but what he will do with the things he has.
Hamilton Wright Mabie

My shortest days end,
My lengthening days begin.
What matters more or less sun in the sky,
When all is sun within?

Christina G Rossetti

As my life today  
has been determined by the way I lived my yesterday,
So my tomorrow is being determined by the way I live my today.

Ralph Waldo Trine

The Sage and the Maniac spring 96

Inside the soul of this small town pooh live two separate creatures
Reaching out, confused-- what to do?
"I, says the Sage, "have been here so long, kept you safe from the storms,
while singing God's hopeful song.

"Why are you here, Maniac, stranger, confused voice of doom?
What possible gain might one know by unlocking your room?"
"What possible gain might there be in a voice of despair,
Loud noixe and emotion permeating the air?"

"YOU!", cried the Maniac, have ruled long enough!
Kept me locked behind the door, in chains, gags, and cuffs!
I, too, have a say in the intense world of this Pooh,
and once and for all, I'll be heard just like you!"

"Oh, arrogant Maniac, what goal might there be
in pursuing a path full of pain and defeat?
Your presence alone creates confusion and spite,
Your dark, crazy emotions, blankets of clouds o'er sun's light."

"Alas, your Sagenesss, let's speak of the soul;
Open your eyes, naiveSage, and the tale will be told.
All of those years, while you locked me away,
You deprived this poor Pooh of her feelings, power, and Way.

"Decisions were made with only the wisdom of mind,
Where success was defined by the "A"'s one could find.
The world of external success knew only black and white;
No confusion, pain, grey areas for this Pooh in flight!

Suddenly, the restraint, the lock on the door
shook with emotion, sent Pooh to the floor!
Pooh's system rebelled, and confusion set in;
The Sage began quivering, wondering "who let you in?"

The Maniac rebelled, began rocking Pooh's boat,
Her immune system responded with clues--a tumor, and a note;
The note said, "Beware, I am still living here;
and if it's Life that you choose my voice you must hear!
Behind this locked door lives pain, confusion, and sad;
But also the passion you've long wished you had."

With Maniac in chains, and Sage the keeper of the door,
Pooh's balloon is only half full and her soul cannot soar.

It is wisdom which carries the soul to life's ledge;
But only Maniac delivers passion, the courageous flight from the edge.

Only in opening to sadness and grief, nature's underrated score,
Can one find true healing, open Life's door.

The gift of the Sage is wisdom indeed,
enough for the average, the majority in need.

But Life's potential , with passion, joy, hope, and more
Is here for the lucky souls, bravehearts who dare open the soul's doors.

Once the Maniac appears, and one's heart lets him in,
The true healing takes place and God's dance will begin.

So, says this Pooh, my faith I'll enhance;
I guess I must entertain the notion of chance.
I'll acknowledge the Maniac, open to confusion, let emotions abound;
For I shan't give up my journey, abandon wishes not yet not found.

Poof! Suddenly a shock, from out of nowhere it came!
An instant message, from an Angel, Friend was his name.
"What, who are you, the Maniac's voice once again?
Come to tease and confuse me with clatter, disorientation, and pain?"

"Oh, no, "replied the Voice, that's not it at all!
God sent me to you to ease the pain of the fall!

"You've tried all your life as have I, I must say,
To love others well, while your Sage led the way.

While praying for love, hope, and faith in your life;
The Sage's bland choices left the room empty, dim, not bright.

The glitch in our path, though unknown to you,
was that life colored with pencil lacks a rainbow's hue.

Your tool box, like mine, kept you safe
inyour child's nights, which were long;
But it's time to invite Maniac's confusion, dance to God's song."

"But why are you here, if you too are unclear?
Just to add to my confusion, and bring me to tears?"

"Not at all, dearest Pooh, 'tis not I in your way!
This is God's dream, His magic play.
We are Angels together, each timid at Maniac's door;
Beings poised for flight, but still crouched on the floor.

"In taking your hand, answers I offer none,
But together, I know we can reach toward the Sun.
The Sage and the Maniac weave God's dream side by side;
All we must do is pray, hold hands, brave the ride.

Our flight is of Soulmates, mirrored angels in pairs;
And angels hold magic in the dreams which are shared.
So let's love well, love always, and drink from life's cup;
With Sage and Maniacs in flight--our direction is up!"

"I see, whispered Pooh, tears quietly filling her eyes;
There's more to the dance than meets our Sage eyes.
We are learning the lessons through our joint flight in God's plan;
We must stay together, take off, buthold hands.
There's no greater ride than this glorious flight.

You are part of my confusion, my journey, my bliss;
This heartsong...this souldance.... is the One I'd not miss.

We must continue to pray, to listen and hear
God's music within, even when there is fear.
My soulmates, friends and angels, three children listen again,
The Sage and the Maniac, they want us to win!

So let's reach for the stars,
With our faith in the lead..
Trust God's love, fly with playmates,
And our souls, they are freed.

The Pooh

The Song - Patricia Manson

My wife Patricia Manson, founder of the Lymphoma Research Foundation Canada/Fondation Canadienne de Recherche sur le Lymphome, passed away on May 29, 1998 after a difficult struggle with non-hodgkin's lymphoma. Her spirit and determination to overcome adversity are now the subject of
"Strong(for Pat)", the title song on a musical CD by the same name.
"Strong(for Pat)" has universal appeal - expressing the agony of cancer, the inconceivable effect of the loss of a spouse and mother (in this case, a mother of five young children) and the determination of both patients and supporters to overcome adversity.

In June 1998, Murray Tevlin wrote this song in memory of Pat. The song was then performed and recorded by the Rain Dogs, Vancouver musicians. The CD will be released in Canada on Saturday October 17, 1998.

 Thank You From Tom Manson, Her Loving Husband.

Seed Thoughts

The guardian angels of life sometimes fly so high as to be beyond our sight, but they are always looking down on us. (Richter)
____________________
It is impossible that anything so natural, so necessary, and so universal as death, should ever have been designed by Providence as an evil to mankind. (Swift)
____________________
To believe is to be strong. Doubt cramps energy. Belief is power.
(F W Robertson)
___________________
The hours we pass with happy prospects in view are more pleasing than those crowded with fruition. (Goldsmith)
____________________
Kindness in words creates confidence,
Kindness in thinking creates profoundness,
Kindness in giving creates love. (Lao-Tse)
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Memory is a capricious and arbitrary creature. You never can tell what pebble she will pick up from the shore of life to keep among her treasures, or what inconspicuous flower of the field she will preserve as the symbol of "thoughts that do often lie to deep for tears...". And yet I do not doubt that the most important things are always the best remembered. (Van Dyke)
____________________
If one cannot arrange that an income of twenty four hours a day shall exactly cover all proper items of expenditure, one does muddle one's whole life indefinitely.
We shall never have any more time. We have, and we have always had, all the time there is. (Bennett)
____________________
What is it that troubles you? Death?
Who lives forever.
Or because your foot has stumbled on the earth?
There is no man who has never stumbled. (Schemuel Ha-Nagid)
____________________
Lord, on you I call for help against my blind and senseless torment,
Since you alone can renew inwardly and outwardly my mind, my will, and my strength,
Which are weak. (Michelangelo)
____________________
Kindness in words creates confidence.
Kindness in thinking creates profoundness,
Kindness in giving creates love. (Lao-Tse)
____________________
Mind is the master-power that moulds and makes,
And man is Mind, and evermore he takes,
The tool of thought, and shaping it what he wills,
Brings forth a thousand joys, a thousand ills:
He thinks in secret, and it comes to pass;
Environment is but his looking glass. (James Allen)
____________________
A friend, the sight of whom to the eyes is a balm - who is the heart's delight - who shares our joys and our sorrows - is a treasure rare.
But other friendly persons who are ready to share in our prosperity, abound.
Friendship's true touchstone is adversity. (Hitopadesa)
____________________
Do valiantly, and hope confidently, and wait patiently. (Carlyle)
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The Spirit of Love feels no burden, thinks nothing of trouble, attempts what is above it's strength, pleads no excuse of impossibility, for it thinks all things lawful for itself, and all things possible. (Thomas A Kempis)
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When thou countest almost all to be lost, then oftentimes the greatest reward is close at hand. (Thomas A Kempis)
____________________
If we could cast the gift of a lovely thought into the heart of a friend, that would be giving as the Angels give. (George Macdonald)
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Death, of which we so much fear, and from which we shrink, is but an intermission of life, and not it's destruction. (Seneca)