True measure of our giving!

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Giving is still measured in units of sacrifice,
Giving without sacrifice will not suffice,
One difference with the love of mice,
Is that man's love is gauged by giving sacrifice,
It is not just about feeling nice,
Be warm enough to melt the ice,
Be ready to pay the price,
It may be just about giving a hungry person rice,
It is not necessarily as easy as throwing a lottery dice,
Shake off the paralyzing 'love for comfort' vice,
You might need to do the shaking twice,
For others it might need a painful thrice,
For some more than thrice to be precise,
Love for comfort can be parasitic like lice,
I know how comfort can entice,
It can be greed's evil device,
By all means do not shun sacrifice,
It is still love's running currency,
Today's most powerful agency,
Giving sacrifice,
Loving sacrifice,
Sacrificial love

Brussels © December 2014 afesehngwaHilary

The treasures in the dark place

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Like the gold and oil and precious stones,
Hidden in the pitch dark bowels of the earth,
Unspeakable treasures hide buried in the dark place,
Yes, that darkest place of your life which dwarfs the light,
And ushers in an apparent perpetual night,
Don't just sit there wallowing in tears,
Throwing a pity party and beckoning an endless whine,
Don't you just seek to drown your reality in wine,
Even if you must cry as we all sometimes do,
Pick up the spades and pick axe,
Tie the flashlight of hardworking wisdom to your forehead,
Prayerfully start digging to bring light to the preciousness,
Lying in wait to be discovered by those who dig,

And with every spade of dirt you throw,
You bring the treasure closer than you know,
Believe you me there is an unseen, undiscovered treasure in that dark place,
Which will blow your mind away,
Make you better not bitter,
Quit looking in the lit space,
You will not find it in the light,
So don't you dare run away,
Before you find that precious stone,
Otherwise the loss is yours to bear.

Brussels © December 2014 afesehngwaHilary

How much longer will you wear that bad make up?

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How much longer,
Will you wear that frown on your face,
Like some terribly bad make up,
How much longer will you groan and moan,
Mope because you grope,
Yet deny the light,
How much longer,
Will you give him/her the power,
To dictate and take away your peace,
How much longer will you nurse that sting of loss,
How much longer will you wallow in debilitating regrets,
When fresh opportunities beckon in the horizon,
How much longer will you whine about the problems,
When the solutions beckon within a tireless effort's reach,
How much longer?
How much longer?
How much longer?

Brussels © December 2014 afesehngwaHilary

Full value of the crumbs!

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Experience of the pitch dark night,
Lends value and brings great delight,
Delight at the slightest ray of light,
Even though the difference is only very slight,

To know the full value of a crumb of bread,
One must know hunger's deepest pang and dread,
To experience joy unspeakable,
The prerequisite is sadness despicable,

To have fully known the best appreciation,
One must have known the worst depreciation,
It is on the rung of the worst failed test,
That one must step to fully know the best,

When life maroons and isolation has rocked your world,
Even very casual companionship can mean the world,
When hate has perpetually been your food,
Suddenly a tiny fraction of love becomes extra very good,

If you have known war's raucous siren,
A modern city's deafening din can be serene,
If a cage has been your haven,
A chance to fly with broken wings becomes heaven,

When all you ever knew is despair,
Dim hope ensures a welcome repair,
Even though  Worst might be its name,
It can be prep for life's best game.

Brussels © December 2014 afesehngwaHilary

Your Stretch Marks

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Stop covering the same distance to and fro,
You will never know how far you can go,
How deep you can reach,

How much you have to teach,
How much you can dare,
How much you can care,

How much you can love,

Never discover you can be gentler than a dove,
Until you dare to stretch a little more every time,

Never underestimating what is your prime,
And even though it might come with a costly price tag of pain,

The proverbial prelude to sustainable gain,
Everybody and anybody can pay that price,

Sometimes you need to try a triple thrice,
It is mostly only a matter of choice,

To give your fullest capacity voice,

Show me your stretch marks,
and I will show you exactly by how much you have grown!

Brussels © December 2014 afesehngwaHilary

Better is best - No limit to better

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I love better,
Better than best,
It takes away the pressure,
Of being the best,
So that like a laser beam,
I can focus just on being better,
Better than the me of one second ago,

There is no limit to being better,
An endless opportunity to improve,
For best in a vague way sets a limit in the mind,
As best can mistakenly tell a lie that it is the end,
When  in reality you just negotiated an exciting growth bend,
For me there is no end,
Opportunities to be better boundless,
Better is best!

Brussels © December 2014 afesehngwaHilary

Carry the Change

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The wrongs and evil of your time,
The countless problems which need to be solved,
Will neither yield to the wishes of your lips,
Disappear at the breath of your opinion,
nor bow at the cursing of your tongue... 

We must carry the change we seek,
or we find it not... 
While words are invaluably important,
Change only happens and comes accompanied by a different kind of action,
It only comes when we go beyond the words,
Make the time and sacrifice with effort,
Rise above the wishes, 
Reach beyond the cursing and the dream,
Fold our sleeves,
Face the challenges head on,
Reach out for the dirt or bug to take it out, 
Not by scheming to only use another's skillful hands,
But with ours, together with theirs...
With our minds and brains,
Our free gift from God - no charge to think and act,
No charge!
The communities in which we live and the world could be better,
Because we lived!

Brussels © December 2014 afesehngwaHilary