A retired college teacher who has turned to poetry in his old age.
Silent complicity in convenient lies normally is more cowardly than kind. There are occasions when it’s best to lie, But far fewer than we let ourselves believe.
By William Alfred5 months ago in Poets
Nowhere special to go, nothing special to do. When an obstacle comes, see what it can teach you. All your life is learning.
The grace in little things, the soundless touch of tending and attending to the world makes, without a splash, all the difference.
A crow arcs without effort through the open sky, singing in concert. ___________________________________________________
Overt and covert violence take different routes to the same end—extortion and forced compliance. Thugs don’t need to break legs to get what they want:
The rivers on the map are drawn in gold. They wind through non-existent vales and hills toward oceans that no ship has ever sailed.
Although you duck down to hide, the noose tightens and before you know it you’re finding it hard to breathe. You smile nonetheless and hope they don’t notice
Like the gaps between frames in a filmstrip we overlook the gaps in our moment-to-moment thinking, choosing, doing, living.
They say that Rembrandt knew the secret of painting character. We too must paint our characters ourselves but not in oils, not with bristles—
In a moment, you can be away in a timeless place of pure attention, where the air is scented with pure joy. • You’re there right now, but probably don’t notice
It takes a lot of chutzpah to write to the Pope, especially when you're taking it on yourself to chide him for neglecting his solemn duty.
Antigone stood firm, refusing to do wrong to please a tyrant who worshipped his own power. Creon failed: he could not make her bend
