Dennis S. Martin's Blog, page 274
June 6, 2018
Pretending
Little Joey plays so hard at being what he sees,
Imagination racing like the rhythm of a train.
Making temporary worlds inspires as it frees
His soul to grow like new mown grass after the rain.
Susie tries to catch a star and hold it as a treasure,
Growing up so quickly that she causes heads to spin.
Stepping into mother's shoes, trying hard to measure
Up to expectations of both kith and kin.
Animations learned in youth
Become a lifetime folly.
Pretending soon becomes a vivid point of reference.
The wise will quickly learn to use escape
To keep them jolly.
The unwise simply cannot see
To tell the difference.
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Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin...
Imagination racing like the rhythm of a train.
Making temporary worlds inspires as it frees
His soul to grow like new mown grass after the rain.
Susie tries to catch a star and hold it as a treasure,
Growing up so quickly that she causes heads to spin.
Stepping into mother's shoes, trying hard to measure
Up to expectations of both kith and kin.
Animations learned in youth
Become a lifetime folly.
Pretending soon becomes a vivid point of reference.
The wise will quickly learn to use escape
To keep them jolly.
The unwise simply cannot see
To tell the difference.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin...
June 5, 2018
Pistols, Slingshots and Mason Jar Lids
A carved out pistol of pliable pine
Tucked away neatly in the belt
Made me the toughest hombre in town,
King of the hill, the fastest draw,
Cop to their robbers, hop-along kid,
Equal to whatever hand might be dealt,
Eager to challenge the forces of evil,
Ready with lightning to face one and all.
Sturdy piece cut from the fork of a sapling,
Strips of old inner tube tied to each end,
Tin cans and bottles lined up on a boulder
To practice an art form as old as dirt.
Pebbles fly with the speed of a rocket.
Bottles smash and tin cans bend
As mother admonishes, ranting and scolding,
Wildly afraid that someone may get hurt.
Pilfered ring from a Mason jar lid,
And fifty three tons of imagination,
I've license to drive, spinning wheels, popping gears,
Changing course and direction but never speed.
I become Richard Petty, or Bobby or Cale,
The winner's circle my one destination.
Not looking back as I race the wide oval,
Desperately trying to stay in the lead.
Life is so simple with youth as companion.
Imagination is all that you need.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin...
Tucked away neatly in the belt
Made me the toughest hombre in town,
King of the hill, the fastest draw,
Cop to their robbers, hop-along kid,
Equal to whatever hand might be dealt,
Eager to challenge the forces of evil,
Ready with lightning to face one and all.
Sturdy piece cut from the fork of a sapling,
Strips of old inner tube tied to each end,
Tin cans and bottles lined up on a boulder
To practice an art form as old as dirt.
Pebbles fly with the speed of a rocket.
Bottles smash and tin cans bend
As mother admonishes, ranting and scolding,
Wildly afraid that someone may get hurt.
Pilfered ring from a Mason jar lid,
And fifty three tons of imagination,
I've license to drive, spinning wheels, popping gears,
Changing course and direction but never speed.
I become Richard Petty, or Bobby or Cale,
The winner's circle my one destination.
Not looking back as I race the wide oval,
Desperately trying to stay in the lead.
Life is so simple with youth as companion.
Imagination is all that you need.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin...
June 4, 2018
Perception / Misconception
Looking out on a level plain
And asking the question "does anyone care?"
Silently longing to break with tradition
Without ending up alone in despair.
Perception from angles acute and obtuse,
Varying versions of justice and truth,
Backgrounds and foregrounds, shadows and glare,
Break down the barriers formed in our youth.
Plans thought out, though ill conceived,
Treasures sought for a rainy day,
Pleasures of the world surrounding
All our simple folksy ways.
Trouble comes and, unprepared,
The burden stings like iron gloves
Smashed upon the cheek of wisdom,
Crashing down from high above.
Perception of our misconception.
Embarrassment to noble thought.
Deeds will out and battles count
When we perceive them to be fought.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin...
And asking the question "does anyone care?"
Silently longing to break with tradition
Without ending up alone in despair.
Perception from angles acute and obtuse,
Varying versions of justice and truth,
Backgrounds and foregrounds, shadows and glare,
Break down the barriers formed in our youth.
Plans thought out, though ill conceived,
Treasures sought for a rainy day,
Pleasures of the world surrounding
All our simple folksy ways.
Trouble comes and, unprepared,
The burden stings like iron gloves
Smashed upon the cheek of wisdom,
Crashing down from high above.
Perception of our misconception.
Embarrassment to noble thought.
Deeds will out and battles count
When we perceive them to be fought.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin...
June 3, 2018
Only Time
How long is forever?
When did it begin?
Is existence a recurring thing?
Does anything really ever end?
Do spirits live inside our shells?
Do lonely souls continue on?
Is everlasting peace a dream
Or just another fabled con?
Do you have all the vivid answers?
Does reason plague your mortal mind?
Does life slap back at you when you
Pose questions seemingly unkind?
Is it our place to understand
The fleeting rhythm or the rhyme?
Or does the answer lie beyond this life?
Who knows?
Only time.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin...
When did it begin?
Is existence a recurring thing?
Does anything really ever end?
Do spirits live inside our shells?
Do lonely souls continue on?
Is everlasting peace a dream
Or just another fabled con?
Do you have all the vivid answers?
Does reason plague your mortal mind?
Does life slap back at you when you
Pose questions seemingly unkind?
Is it our place to understand
The fleeting rhythm or the rhyme?
Or does the answer lie beyond this life?
Who knows?
Only time.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartinAmazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin...
June 2, 2018
Out of Step... Out of Place
The army steps in step by step,
Each footfall neatly mapped.
With twelve to the front
And eight to the rear
Each arm swing has been choreographed.
Eyes straight forward,
Posture checked,
Weapons neatly held in place,
No syncopation is allowed
In this display of rhythmic grace.
No one allowed to miss a beat...
No one allowed to wander...
No time for stopping to reflect...
No time to pose or ponder.
Always in a rush,
Though I don't understand the race.
No wonder I feel out of step...
And even out of place.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin...
Each footfall neatly mapped.
With twelve to the front
And eight to the rear
Each arm swing has been choreographed.
Eyes straight forward,
Posture checked,
Weapons neatly held in place,
No syncopation is allowed
In this display of rhythmic grace.
No one allowed to miss a beat...
No one allowed to wander...
No time for stopping to reflect...
No time to pose or ponder.
Always in a rush,
Though I don't understand the race.
No wonder I feel out of step...
And even out of place.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartinAmazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin...
June 1, 2018
Observation Point
Looking out from a vantage point
High above the masses,
Seeking all the wisdom left by ages eons past,
Yearning understanding as a guide
Through rocky passes,
Hoping against hope that every breath
Won't be the last.
Being an observer of
The human situation,
Learning how they deal with strain
And daily aggravation,
Seeing how they grow and go
In multiple directions,
Little secrets that they hide
Just to avoid detection.
Mumbled, jumbled lives so
Froth with muddled complication.
Amazing what one sees from this
High point of observation.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin...
High above the masses,
Seeking all the wisdom left by ages eons past,
Yearning understanding as a guide
Through rocky passes,
Hoping against hope that every breath
Won't be the last.
Being an observer of
The human situation,
Learning how they deal with strain
And daily aggravation,
Seeing how they grow and go
In multiple directions,
Little secrets that they hide
Just to avoid detection.
Mumbled, jumbled lives so
Froth with muddled complication.
Amazing what one sees from this
High point of observation.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartinAmazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin...
May 31, 2018
Nothing Left But Goodbye
I hate funeral parlors....
Never want to be the object
Of morose attention.
Sobbing, weeping, wailing, moaning
Mourners. Not to mention
All the things the undertakers
Do to violate the dead.
Filling them with fluids...
Pancaked cheeks of phony red.
Remembrance is in the heart,
Not lying in a box of steel.
Respects are paid conveying to the living
How we truly feel.
In the last analysis,
Though it be cause to cry,
There's really nothing left to say
Except a silent, fond goodbye.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin...
Never want to be the object
Of morose attention.
Sobbing, weeping, wailing, moaning
Mourners. Not to mention
All the things the undertakers
Do to violate the dead.
Filling them with fluids...
Pancaked cheeks of phony red.
Remembrance is in the heart,
Not lying in a box of steel.
Respects are paid conveying to the living
How we truly feel.
In the last analysis,
Though it be cause to cry,
There's really nothing left to say
Except a silent, fond goodbye.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartinAmazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin...
May 30, 2018
Next Time
If at first you don't succeed...
You all know the rest.
You can fill the blanks,
So there's no need to have a test.
A lot of truth is handled in
That simple one line phrase
About persistence. How the human
Spirit can amaze
And rise above the petty failures
Caused by being unprepared,
Learning from mistakes,
Never running scared.
Climbing from the pit of doubt,
Eyes on the sublime.
Stars are out there.
You can reach them if you try...
Next time.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin...
You all know the rest.
You can fill the blanks,
So there's no need to have a test.
A lot of truth is handled in
That simple one line phrase
About persistence. How the human
Spirit can amaze
And rise above the petty failures
Caused by being unprepared,
Learning from mistakes,
Never running scared.
Climbing from the pit of doubt,
Eyes on the sublime.
Stars are out there.
You can reach them if you try...
Next time.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartinAmazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin...
May 29, 2018
Notions
Vague thoughts, like mental clouds,
Come floating through the air.
Bubbles burst into a whim
Of unexpected quick desire.
A rush of strong adrenaline goes
Coursing through our veins
To raise imagination
Floating higher, ever higher.
Mental images abound,
Resound, repeat aplenty,
Views, opinions, vague beliefs,
A plan or an intention.
Notions come and notions go
As quickly as they started,
Father of discovery...
Mother of invention.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin...
Come floating through the air.
Bubbles burst into a whim
Of unexpected quick desire.
A rush of strong adrenaline goes
Coursing through our veins
To raise imagination
Floating higher, ever higher.
Mental images abound,
Resound, repeat aplenty,
Views, opinions, vague beliefs,
A plan or an intention.
Notions come and notions go
As quickly as they started,
Father of discovery...
Mother of invention.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin...
May 28, 2018
Metamorphosis
We often think of butterflies
When needing an example
Of metamorphosis in it's pure state.
Nestled safe in its cocoon the
Caterpillar undergoes
The multiplicity of changes
Meant to seal its fate.
Humans can't afford the
Luxury of a cocoon.
Our changes come more subtly and slow.
Unclothed to every whit and whim
Life throws in our direction,
Exposure is the kindling that
Makes our fire grow.
As the piper plays our tune,
Beckoning our ear,
As the crowd chants and the chorus sings,
We are growing,
Ever growing,
Through all our doubts and fears,
Ever closer to the day when
We too spread our wings.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin...
When needing an example
Of metamorphosis in it's pure state.
Nestled safe in its cocoon the
Caterpillar undergoes
The multiplicity of changes
Meant to seal its fate.
Humans can't afford the
Luxury of a cocoon.
Our changes come more subtly and slow.
Unclothed to every whit and whim
Life throws in our direction,
Exposure is the kindling that
Makes our fire grow.
As the piper plays our tune,
Beckoning our ear,
As the crowd chants and the chorus sings,
We are growing,
Ever growing,
Through all our doubts and fears,
Ever closer to the day when
We too spread our wings.
Lulu Storefront: http://www.lulu.com/dsmartin
Amazon Author's Page: http://www.amazon.com/Dennis-S-Martin...
