Dennis S. Martin's Blog, page 192
April 25, 2020
Zeal
The fiercest spirit that I’ve ever known
Stood five foot four,
Weighed a buck twenty-five
But filled with such gusto
That everyone round him
Was thrilled with the prospect
Of being alive.
Every chance an eager adventure,
Every errand a passionate test,
Every task approached with intensity
Fueled by the fervor of
Unabashed zest.
Would that I could find
This spirit and zeal
That magnifies intensity.
Life would be more of
A carnival thrill for
The gypsy who dawdles
And dwells within me.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Stood five foot four,
Weighed a buck twenty-five
But filled with such gusto
That everyone round him
Was thrilled with the prospect
Of being alive.
Every chance an eager adventure,
Every errand a passionate test,
Every task approached with intensity
Fueled by the fervor of
Unabashed zest.
Would that I could find
This spirit and zeal
That magnifies intensity.
Life would be more of
A carnival thrill for
The gypsy who dawdles
And dwells within me.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
April 24, 2020
Wisdom
I’ve been waiting such a
Long, long time for
The wisdom they promised
Would come with age.
All that sage intuition of
Gray-bearded elders has
Somehow escaped or
Refused to engage.
“You’ll understand someday,
Mayhap when you’re older.”
It felt like a covenant
Back in the day.
And though I keep biding,
Awaiting epiphany,
Reason absconds like
A scared castaway.
But time is a traveler,
Patient and shrewd
And experience is a
Tutor of worth,
And maybe if I can
Just live long enough
I’ll know what I wish
I had known from birth.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Long, long time for
The wisdom they promised
Would come with age.
All that sage intuition of
Gray-bearded elders has
Somehow escaped or
Refused to engage.
“You’ll understand someday,
Mayhap when you’re older.”
It felt like a covenant
Back in the day.
And though I keep biding,
Awaiting epiphany,
Reason absconds like
A scared castaway.
But time is a traveler,
Patient and shrewd
And experience is a
Tutor of worth,
And maybe if I can
Just live long enough
I’ll know what I wish
I had known from birth.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
April 23, 2020
Understanding
So many leaves on this cabbage head
I simply cannot comprehend.
I try to peel them one by one
To get down to the core.
But only find the crux to be
A bitter disappointment
That vexes every rationale
And leaves me want for more.
I try to be compassionate,
Show empathy in kind,
Be patient and forgiving and
To keep an open mind.
But the art of understanding
Is a mammoth bugaboo,
And the cagey fox of acumen
Is scarce to share a clue.
So, I will strive for tolerance
And grant an open hand
And hope that when the facts are in
I will finally understand.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
I simply cannot comprehend.
I try to peel them one by one
To get down to the core.
But only find the crux to be
A bitter disappointment
That vexes every rationale
And leaves me want for more.
I try to be compassionate,
Show empathy in kind,
Be patient and forgiving and
To keep an open mind.
But the art of understanding
Is a mammoth bugaboo,
And the cagey fox of acumen
Is scarce to share a clue.
So, I will strive for tolerance
And grant an open hand
And hope that when the facts are in
I will finally understand.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
April 22, 2020
Truthfulness
Thank you for your candor.
It is much appreciated in
A day where P.C. verbiage is
The order of the day.
Must not speak in words offensive
To the sensitivity of
This and that,
These or those,
Else be charged a popinjay.
In a world where honesty’s
A thing sold to the highest bid
And loyalty chooses salt and succor
Based on rank convenience,
Little wonder honor’s plunder
Permeates the humble horde
Laying waste to faithfulness and
Disengaging common sense.
And we who toil in discontent,
Left to speculate,
Must make the best of what we know,
And truth will have to wait.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
It is much appreciated in
A day where P.C. verbiage is
The order of the day.
Must not speak in words offensive
To the sensitivity of
This and that,
These or those,
Else be charged a popinjay.
In a world where honesty’s
A thing sold to the highest bid
And loyalty chooses salt and succor
Based on rank convenience,
Little wonder honor’s plunder
Permeates the humble horde
Laying waste to faithfulness and
Disengaging common sense.
And we who toil in discontent,
Left to speculate,
Must make the best of what we know,
And truth will have to wait.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
April 21, 2020
Trustworthiness
Lord, help me find
That sweet spot in my mind
Where veracity musters and never retreats,
Where principles stand under
Steadfast demand and
Honesty knows no defeat.
You may be sure
My intentions are pure,
My devotion unfailing,
Staunch and secure.
Dogged integrity
Rises to rush me a
Stream of fidelity born to endure.
Whatever endeavor you pursue
I will never lie to you.
I am the soul on which you can depend.
Genuine through and through,
Best in your retinue
I am forever your trustworthy friend.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
That sweet spot in my mind
Where veracity musters and never retreats,
Where principles stand under
Steadfast demand and
Honesty knows no defeat.
You may be sure
My intentions are pure,
My devotion unfailing,
Staunch and secure.
Dogged integrity
Rises to rush me a
Stream of fidelity born to endure.
Whatever endeavor you pursue
I will never lie to you.
I am the soul on which you can depend.
Genuine through and through,
Best in your retinue
I am forever your trustworthy friend.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
April 20, 2020
Trust
Hard to find someone to trust
In a world where trust is a foreign saint.
Would that I could have presumption of proof
With clear confidence and certitude.
But time and experience
Preach a hard sermon
And logic steps sideways to lodge its complaint.
Then alternate facts only add to confusion
And bristle the brisket of new attitudes.
The journey moves forward,
Decisions wax weightily,
Mocking conviction,
In need of a friend.
But who holds the promise of
Strength and reliance?
Who can I turn to and
Trust in the end?
Tempt me and fill me with oceans of hope
Until faith wears the mantle of grit,
So I may seek counsel with steadfast assurance
And never look back in regret.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
In a world where trust is a foreign saint.
Would that I could have presumption of proof
With clear confidence and certitude.
But time and experience
Preach a hard sermon
And logic steps sideways to lodge its complaint.
Then alternate facts only add to confusion
And bristle the brisket of new attitudes.
The journey moves forward,
Decisions wax weightily,
Mocking conviction,
In need of a friend.
But who holds the promise of
Strength and reliance?
Who can I turn to and
Trust in the end?
Tempt me and fill me with oceans of hope
Until faith wears the mantle of grit,
So I may seek counsel with steadfast assurance
And never look back in regret.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
April 19, 2020
Tranquility
Oh, sweet contentment, bide within
To still the storms that purloin peace.
Nestle soft in quietude
Holding hearts in hushed repose.
Staid in stillness,
Bathed in midnight,
Lost in unabashed release,
Pleasure pure and senses sure
As petals soft upon the rose.
Calm breath breezes overhead to
Warm the placid glacial flow
From mindful plains of conscious study
And unbounded reverie.
Playful in its pose and posture,
Lounging in the afterglow
With respect for restful pleasure
Winging metaphorically.
Fond to know when said and done
The mind knows what the heart can see
When harmony immerses all
In oceans of tranquility.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
To still the storms that purloin peace.
Nestle soft in quietude
Holding hearts in hushed repose.
Staid in stillness,
Bathed in midnight,
Lost in unabashed release,
Pleasure pure and senses sure
As petals soft upon the rose.
Calm breath breezes overhead to
Warm the placid glacial flow
From mindful plains of conscious study
And unbounded reverie.
Playful in its pose and posture,
Lounging in the afterglow
With respect for restful pleasure
Winging metaphorically.
Fond to know when said and done
The mind knows what the heart can see
When harmony immerses all
In oceans of tranquility.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
April 18, 2020
Toughness
Are you tough?
Are you rough?
Are you really strong enough?
Or are you so much frill and fluff?
A namby-pamby powder puff.
If you really know your stuff
You could even run a bluff.
Just toss a comment off-the-cuff or
Mumble like a grumble gruff.
But if you run off in a huff
You give up claim to your rebuff
And could wind up flat on your duff
When you find out
You’re not so tough.
Tough guys don’t stand up and fight for
It is no matter of might.
Toughness tarries deep within
In silence,
Like a trusted friend.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Are you rough?
Are you really strong enough?
Or are you so much frill and fluff?
A namby-pamby powder puff.
If you really know your stuff
You could even run a bluff.
Just toss a comment off-the-cuff or
Mumble like a grumble gruff.
But if you run off in a huff
You give up claim to your rebuff
And could wind up flat on your duff
When you find out
You’re not so tough.
Tough guys don’t stand up and fight for
It is no matter of might.
Toughness tarries deep within
In silence,
Like a trusted friend.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
April 17, 2020
Tolerance
Youth is not a fruitful season for
Open-minded tolerance.
The liberal creed of leniency
Is not an inbred social trait.
It’s more of an acquired nature
Summoned through experience,
Although it seems some never grasp
The aptitude to watch and wait.
Stumbling through my tender years
I felt the angst of restiveness,
Engaged in animosity with
Bickering and baleful brawl.
And though I made it to adulthood
With all my teeth, I must confess to
Trying much too hard to
Run my raucous race ere I could crawl.
And still I find it difficult to
Turn deaf ear
Or suffer fools,
I’ve made a point to find the wrench of
Tolerance among my tools.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Open-minded tolerance.
The liberal creed of leniency
Is not an inbred social trait.
It’s more of an acquired nature
Summoned through experience,
Although it seems some never grasp
The aptitude to watch and wait.
Stumbling through my tender years
I felt the angst of restiveness,
Engaged in animosity with
Bickering and baleful brawl.
And though I made it to adulthood
With all my teeth, I must confess to
Trying much too hard to
Run my raucous race ere I could crawl.
And still I find it difficult to
Turn deaf ear
Or suffer fools,
I’ve made a point to find the wrench of
Tolerance among my tools.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
April 16, 2020
Thrift
Some may scoff and think me cheap.
I choose to call it thrifty.
Prudence courses through my veins
And nourishes my simple brain.
While skimp and scrimp and saving form
The essence of economy,
Tis only pure parsimony
That owns to keep me wholly sane.
Never been a gambler,
Never pressed my luck to strike it rich.
Rather save my pocket change for
Days beset with pouring rain.
And no one claims it requisite
To suffer in austerity, or
If you dock in poverty,
In poverty you must remain.
Many plague me with advice on
How to ride the treasure train,
But I have everything I need.
Little to lose, but
Less to gain.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
I choose to call it thrifty.
Prudence courses through my veins
And nourishes my simple brain.
While skimp and scrimp and saving form
The essence of economy,
Tis only pure parsimony
That owns to keep me wholly sane.
Never been a gambler,
Never pressed my luck to strike it rich.
Rather save my pocket change for
Days beset with pouring rain.
And no one claims it requisite
To suffer in austerity, or
If you dock in poverty,
In poverty you must remain.
Many plague me with advice on
How to ride the treasure train,
But I have everything I need.
Little to lose, but
Less to gain.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
