Category: Personal

NaPoWriMo 2021 Day 27

On By WinstonIn Enlightenment, NaPoWriMo, Personal, Personal Responsibility, Poetry, Self Awareness, UncategorizedLeave a comment

I struggle a lot with getting overwhelmed by the things I have to do. Then I don’t do them. Then I get more overwhelmed. Then I don’t do them… I think you see how that works. Well, I’ve been working at changing that. This poem kind of articulates that struggle for me.

The Way Forward

Sometimes the things we plan to do,

Do not go as we’d hope.

And then we stress and blame ourselves,

Step on that slippery slope.

Now from that stress, depression comes,

To sap our will to try.

It just gets worse the longer we,

Allow time to slip by.

Before you know it’s spiraled down,

So overwhelmed we feel.

And though we tell ourselves it’s not,

Our black despair is real.

But here’s a thing I’ve had to learn,

That’s not a healthy place.

If you give in, if you get stuck,

Believe you’re a disgrace.

You can get stuck, see no way out,

But that’s not true I swear.

You can get free, can break those chains,

Find your way back from there.

Like any trip, it’s that first step,

The bravest thing you do.

Once that thing’s done, take the next step,

And then another too.

There will be times it will be hard,

You take no step that day.

And maybe two or three go by,

You think you’ve lost your way.

But you aren’t beat so don’t despair,

Can’t lose until you quit.

So give yourself permission to,

Fail. Make your peace with it.

But from that setback rise back up,

Push on despite the pain.

For even just the smallest step,

Is still some kind of gain.

So understand you will despair,

But you don’t have to dwell.

For each step’s one step closer to,

Escaping from your hell.

Cheers, Winston

Sir Winston Churchill, for whom I was named, once famously said, “When you’re going through Hell, keep going.” It seems to apply here.

NaPoWriMo 2021 Day 26

On By WinstonIn Dark / Gothic, NaPoWriMo, Old Gods and Magic Folk, Personal, Poetry, The Old WaysLeave a comment

For some time now, I have been having a hard time sleeping through the night. I fall asleep quickly enough, but often wake up a few hours later then struggle to get back to sleep. Last night’s three and a half hour nap provided the fodder for today’s offering.

Ode to Pasithea

Oh elusive fleeting vision,

Which vanished in the night.

Would that you tarried here with me,

Until the morning light.

Far, far too soon you did depart,

While I bereft remain.

Of your sweet solace now deprived,

To face my day again.

Return to me I do implore,

Please bless me with your grace.

Remove the cares which freight my soul,

And with your peace replace.

Return, return I beg of you,

With me in darkness stay.

Then at the dawning take your leave,

Do what you will all day.

Oh Pasithea if you hear,

Your husband’s favour bring.

If Hypnos grant this boon to me,

Your praises I will sing.

Again in darkness I awake,

To find sleep fled once more.

It seems that Hypnos though a God,

Cannot abide my snore.

Cheers, Winston

Note: Hypnos was the Greek God of Sleep. Pasithea, his wife, is believed to have been the Goddess of Rest and Relaxation.

NaPoWriMo 2021 Day 25

On By WinstonIn Enlightenment, Memories, NaPoWriMo, Personal, Personal Responsibility, Poetry, Psychology, Self Awareness, UncategorizedLeave a comment

For many years, I allowed my past (or at least my perception of it) to dictate how I saw myself. Over time, I’ve revised that narrative. I’m working on becoming a synthesis of who I believe I was and who I believe I can be. Today’s poem looks at the importance of acknowledging the past but living in the now and choosing who we want to be rather than who we were told we are.

The Past Need Not Define

I sing the songs of long ago,

Forgotten all these years.

And as I sing my mind drifts back,

My eyes fill up with tears.

Where did they go the days and years?

Were they as I recall?

Were they so carefree and sublime?

Have I rewritten all?

The mem’ry of a summer day,

So sweet my heart will ache.

A certain smell and then a trip,

Down mem’ry lane I take.

But are those mem’ries really real,

Or something we create?

Do we just cling to what we need,

No matter love or hate?

If it can justify the things,

Which we think us define.

Then we will find just what we need,

And take it as a sign.

I do not think it matters much,

How accurate and true.

Each person’s mem’ries are their own,

So yours are true for you.

But do not let your mem’ries make,

A trap, ensnare your soul.

Remember now is where you live,

Don’t stay down in that hole.

Take comfort where there’s comfort found,

Learn lessons that you find.

Make peace, find peace, within your past,

To free today, your mind.

Cheers, Winston

NaPoWriMo 2021 Day 24

On By WinstonIn Humor, Loving Life, my blessed life, NaPoWriMo, Personal, PoetryLeave a comment

With my hard drive dead, I’ve lost an animation project I’ve been working on for few months. That sucks, and I was pretty stressed about it. But that’s what I get for not backing things up as often as I should. Long story short, I was in need of comfort this morning and an old friend really came through for me. This poem is about them.

A True Friend Indeed

I have a friend when things go wrong,

That’s always there for me.

To lift me up and see me thru,

Whatever it may be.

In all the years I’ve known them,

They’ve never let me down.

Just a few minutes spent with them,

Make a smile from a frown.

I cannot say enough good things,

About a friend so true.

And if you like, I’m certain they,

Could be a friend to you.

My friend does not discriminate,

Does not care who you are.

They do not ask how big your house,

Nor care how fast your car.

My friend is strength when you are tired,

And warmth when you are cold.

They’ll help you through from day to day,

When you are feeling old.

So just sit back put up your feet,

Now take a little time.

To realize that coffee is,

The subject of this rhyme.

Cheers, Winston

NaPoWriMo 2021 Day 23

On By WinstonIn NaPoWriMo, Personal, Poetry, TechnologyLeave a comment

So… When I sat down to write tonight’s poem, I booted up my computer and the hard drive was dead as a brick. That solved the question of what to write tonight.

Digital Doom

Computers are such useful things,

Right up until they’re not.

And then they truly are a bane,

All of their worth forgot.

To work, to play, to read to write,

All this and so much more.

They let you do so many things,

So easy to adore.

They slowly infiltrate your life,

‘Til on them you depend.

And once they have you in their grasp,

They crash. That’s it. The end.

So always have a backup plan,

For when it all goes bad.

The less your life’s tied to these things,

The less you will be sad.

Cheers, Winston

NaPoWriMo 2021 Day 22

On By WinstonIn Enlightenment, NaPoWriMo, Personal, Poetry, Society, Values, VolunteeringLeave a comment

My father-in-law Yvon Cyr received an award tonight for Outstanding Senior Volunteer. Over the years he has logged 55,000 hours as a volunteer. That works out to over 28 years of full time employment! This poem is dedicated to him and all the other hard working and unsung heroes who give everything they can to those who need their help and ask nothing in return.

In Praise of Volunteers

What does it mean to volunteer,

To give your time for free?

Give with no thought of getting back,

As strange as that may be.

How strange it is and wonderful,

Such kindness now to find.

Someone who puts another first,

No payment in their mind.

Most times when someone gives a hand,

The expectation’s clear.

There’s something wanted in return,

Not so the volunteer.

They work unsung, behind the scenes,

To see a project through.

And when it’s done they start to look,

For something more to do.

They’ll give their time to help to feed,

Those who can’t feed themselves.

You’ll find them in a foodbank when,

It’s time to stock the shelves.

They raise the funds to help a cause,

Because they know it’s right.

And if there’s cause there’s some who will,

Stay and help through the night.

So thank you all for all you do,

For tasks both great and small.

You do so much ask nothing back,

You should stand proud and tall.

Now please accept my humble thanks,

These simple words of praise.

To all the volunteers out there,

My glass in toast, I raise.

Cheers, Winston

NaPoWriMo 2021 Day 21

On By WinstonIn NaPoWriMo, Personal, Poetry, Self Awareness, Uncategorized, writer`s blockLeave a comment

Over two-thirds of the way through the month and it’s getting a little more challenging. But with a suggestion from my personal muse, angel and wife, here we are.

The Challenge

I hate it when I must work with,

Deadlines of any kind.

The very thought I might miss them.

Sets traps within my mind.

So every year I sit and face,

This challenge and my fears.

When every day a deadline looms,

Each day closer to tears.

There is no prize if I succeed,

Nor penalty if not.

It’s in my head the whole of it,

That’s where the battle’s fought.

I set the goal, I set the pace,

It all is up to me.

I am much harsher on my self,

Than someone else would be.

I love to write, I truly do,

But now it is a chore.

One that I do but grudgingly,

While thinking “Nevermore!”.

But I won’t quit, will stay the course,

Deliver on my vow.

There’s just nine days that now remain,

I’ll get through them somehow.

So bear with me, I’ll bear with you,

Until this task is done.

And once this month is over then,

Words once more will seem fun.

Cheers, Winston

NaPoWriMo 2021 Day 19

On By WinstonIn NaPoWriMo, Personal, Poetry, The Power of WordsLeave a comment

It’s getting to that point in the month where all the easy ideas have been picked over. So something a little different now. As always, I’d love to know what people think. 🙂

The Power of Words

“A picture’s worth a thousand words.”,

Or so the people say.

But if you read those thousand words,

More pictures they convey.

To illustrate the point I make,

Please read these words with me.

“The brown horse dappled by the shade,

Stood ‘neath an apple tree.”

Far fewer than a thousand words,

Yet pictured in your mind.

A brown horse and an apple tree,

What more is there to find?

And better yet, each person saw,

A different tree and horse.

For what we see comes from within,

Each one unique of course.

We’ve all not seen the same brown horse,

Nor just one apple tree.

That’s why the picture in your head,

Is not the same as me.

Who knows how many pictures from,

A thousand words may flow.

If you’d find out go read a book,

Inside, enjoy the show.

Cheers, Winston

NaPoWriMo 2021 Day 17

On By WinstonIn family, Love, Loving Life, my blessed life, NaPoWriMo, Nature, Personal, PoetryLeave a comment

I’ve seen it said that when a cardinal stops by, it’s a visit from someone who has passed on. I don’t know if it’s true or not. It’s nice to think it might be though. So when a cardinal visited my yard this morning I though of that and thinking of that visit wrote this.

The Cardinal

A cardinal in my back yard,

Peers in through window pane.

And I see there, this scarlet bird,

And wonder once again.

They say that when a cardinal,

Is visiting with you.

It’s from a loved one who has passed,

To say they miss you too.

For no one ever truly goes,

While they stay in our heart.

All those we love not even death,

Can ever really part.

The cardinal looks back at me,

And deep inside I hope.

That one of those I’ve loved and lost,

Sent him to help me cope.

So thank you lovely bird of red,

For visiting just now.

‘Cause whether legend ‘s true or not,

It is for me somehow.

Cheers, Winston

NaPoWriMo 2021 Day 16

On By WinstonIn family, Love, Loving Life, my angel, my blessed life, NaPoWriMo, Personal, Poetry, RelationshipsLeave a comment

To my angel Lynn. My love, my muse and my best friend. Thank you for being my perfect person. ❤

My Ideal Wife

“Good morning Love.” I say to her,

Receive a sleepy smile.

And marvel at the luck I’ve found,

Just gaze at her a while.

Her soul as beautiful I swear,

As anyone could be.

I know I’ll never understand,

Why my Angel chose me.

I fix her breakfast coffee too,

Then with our pup go walk.

And as our dog sniffs everything,

My love and I just talk.

We talk of things we’d like to do,

And things we’re dreaming of.

Still after twenty years and more,

Were never more in love.

Back home I sit and rub her feet,

She drifts on edge of sleep.

She murmurs if I just do that,

Then I’m the one she’ll keep.

I close my eyes and thank the Gods,

For my near perfect life.

I know that it would not be so,

Without my ideal wife.

Cheers, Winston