Angela's World
When Angela was very young,
Age two or three or so,
Her mother and her father
Taught her never to say NO.
They taught her that she must agree
With everything they said,
And if she didn't, she was spanked
And sent upstairs to bed.
So Angela grew up to be
A most agreeable child;
She was never angry
And she was never wild;
She always shared, she always cared,
She never picked a fight,
And no matter what her parents said,
She thought that they were right.
Angela the Angel did very well in school
And, as you might imagine, she followed every rule;
Her teachers said she was so well-bred,
So quiet and so good,
But how Angela felt inside
They never understood.
Angela had lots of friends
Who liked her for her smile;
They knew she was the kind of gal
Who'd go the extra mile;
And even when she had a cold
And really needed rest,
When someone asked her if she'd help
She always answered Yes.
When Angela was thirty-three, she was a lawyer's wife.
She had a home and family, and a nice suburban life.
She had a little girl of four
And a little boy of nine,
And if someone asked her how she felt
She always answered, "Fine."
But one cold night near Christmastime
When her family was in bed,
She lay awake as awful thoughts went spinning through her head;
She didn't know why, and she didn't know how,
But she wanted her life to end;
So she begged Whoever put her here
To take her back again.
And then she heard, from deep inside,
A voice that was soft and low;
It only said a single word
And the word it said was�NO.
From that moment on, Angela knew
Exactly what she had to do.
Her life depended on that word,
So this is what her loved ones heard:
NO, I just don't want to;
NO, I don't agree;
NO, that's yours to handle;
NO, that's wrong for me;
NO, I wanted something else;
NO, that hurt a lot!
NO, I'm tired, and NO, I'm busy,
And NO, I'd rather not!
Well, her family found it shocking,
Her friends reacted with surprise;
But Angela was different, you could see it in her eyes;
For they've held no meek submission
Since that night three years ago
When Angela the Angel
Got permission to say NO.
Today Angela's a person first, then a mother and a wife.
She knows where she begins and ends,
She has a separate life.
She has talents and ambitions,
She has feelings, needs and goals.
She has money in the bank and
An opinion at the polls.
And to her boy and girl she says,
"It's nice when we agree;
But if you can't say NO, you'll never grow
To be all you're meant to be.
Because I know I'm sometimes wrong
And because I love you so,
You'll always be my angels
Even when you tell me NO."
� Barbara K. Bassett, 1986.
Don't Pass Me By
He walked with eyes lowered, head to the ground.
When he saw me, he spoke, and I took in his sight.
He was scruffy and raggedy
In his eyes was no light.
He said, "Ma'am, I'm hungry."
He was very polite.
I said to him softly, "No money have I,
But I'll buy you some food with these food stamps of mine."
We walked on in silence, this homeless old man,
And he said, "Give me your number -
I'll pay you back when I can."
I looked in his eyes, where hopelessness lay,
And I said, "Never mind. I don't want you to pay."
As we walked down the aisles of the grocery store,
Like a child he picked something, then asked for some more.
I gladly told him to fill all his needs,
Because in my lifetime, I've done some bad deeds.
I'll never forget him, as he went on his way,
Because he gave me something I can never repay.
He gave me a chance to give what I could,
A chance to show love to the misunderstood -
A chance to feed someone when no one else could -
A chance to be special, a chance to be good.
I'll ever be grateful to the stranger in rags,
For showing me Love in a few grocery bags,
For letting me be the one who had more,
For letting me answer his knock at my door.
You see, I'm no angel, though I've wanted to be.
I've hurt many people by just being me,
And this man, this stranger, who did not pass me by,
Set free for an instant an angel to fly.
� Jude Revoli, 1996.
Don't Quit
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 its 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 faint and faltering man,
Often the struggler has given up
When he might have captured the victor's cup.
And he 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 of the clouds of doubt -
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems afar;
So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit -
It's when things seems worst that you mustn't quit.
Author Unknown.
It's Up to You
One song can spark a moment,
One flower can wake the dream.
One tree can start a forest,
One bird can herald spring.
One smile begins a friendship,
One handclasp lifts a soul.
One star can guide a ship at sea,
One word can frame the goal.
One vote can change a nation,
One sunbeam lights a room.
One candle wipes out darkness,
One laugh will conquer gloom.
One step must start each journey,
One word must start each prayer.
One hope will raise our spirits,
One touch can show you care.
One voice can speak with wisdom,
One heart can know what's true.
One life can make the difference,
You see, it's up to you!
Author Unknown.
Phenomenal Woman
Pretty women wonder where my secret lies.
I'm not cute or built to suit a fashion model's size.
But when I start to tell them,
They think I'm telling lies.
I say,
It's in the reach of my arms,
The span of my hips,
The stride of my steps,
The curl of my lips.
I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.
I walk into a room
Just as cool as you please,
And to a man,
The fellows stand or
Fall down on their knees.
Then they swarm around me,
A hive of honey bees.
I say,
It's the fire of my eyes,
And the flash of my teeth,
The swing in my waist,
And the joy in my feet.
I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.
Men themselves have wondered
What they see in me.
They try so much
But they can't touch
My inner mystery.
When I try to show them
They say they can't see.
I say,
It's in the arch of my back,
The sun of my smile,
The ride of my breasts,
The grace of my style.
I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.
Now you understand
Just why my head's not bowed.
I don't shout or jump about,
Or have to talk real loud.
When you see me passing
It ought to make you proud.
I say,
It's in the click of my heels,
The bend of my hair,
The palm of my hand,
The need for my care.
'Cause I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.
� Maya Angelou, 1978.
State of Mind
If you think you are beaten, you are;
If you think you dare not, you don't.
If you like to win, but think you can't,
It's almost a cinch you wont.
If you think you'll lose, you're lost;
For out in the world we find
Success begins with a fellow's will;
It's all in the state of mind.
If you think you're outclassed, you are;
You've got to think high to rise,
You've got to be sure of yourself
Before you can win the prize.
Life's battles don't always go
To the stronger or faster man;
But sooner or later the man who wins
Is the man who thinks he can.
Author Unknown.
The Grave No One Tended
The day was lovely as I strolled along
Peering at stones on the way,
And that's when I saw it, that pitiful cross
That looked splintered and faded away.
With flowers in hand to tend Father's grave,
I knew I must hurry along.
But I couldn't help but linger awhile
At that cross that just didn't belong.
The date on the front confirmed my suspicious
Of what I already knew.
A child lay beneath that horrible cross
And it's faded color of blue.
What selfish parents they must have been
To bury their child all alone,
Without flowers or candles to light the night
And not even a simple headstone.
I looked even closer at that awful cross
That was nearly splintered away.
And there on the back, I read the words
That changed me forever that day.
"This cross isn't grand, but it was carved by my hands
So you'll know, son, how much I care.
It's the color of blue to remind me of you
And how painful it is I'm not there.
That it's you who is gone and it's me living on
While your young life has come to an end.
And I'm left alone, never again with a home
And a grave that's too painful to tend."
Tears stung my eyes as I looked all around
At the monuments that ragged cross put to shame.
And I shared with those parents their horrible loss
That brought them such terrible pain.
And all the tombstones, some even taller than me
Suddenly seemed small in a way,
Next to that little handmade cross, carved with such love
And the flowers I planted that day.
� Cheryl L. Costello-Forshey.
As always, comments are welcome.
E-Mail Me