"What difference does it make to the dead,
the orphans and the homeless,
whether the mad destruction is wrought under the name of totalitarianism
or the holy name of liberty or democracy?"

Mahatma Gandhi, (1869 - 1948)

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Come on in     sit a while
Maybe I can make you smile . . .

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Life is a Joke?
(my answer to a 13 year old grandson)

"Life's is a joke", He was saying to me
"We've been talking about it, and my friends agree"

Their experiences have been a laugh not a tear
And they're starting to question just why they are here

"So write me a poem, with 'life' as the theme"
I accepted his challenge and started to scheme

A poet once said, "Life's but a stage"
But, "Life is a circle", said an old native sage

The Christians will say it's a step on a stone
To a kingdom above . . . for those who atone

A never-ending story . . . the flip of a page?
An unequal balance of laughter and rage?

The beat of a heart? . . . A brief moment in time?
Puppets dancing on strings? . . . A player in mime?

A shadow that's walking? . . . A toy made of glass?
An important collection of things you amass?

A large cache of money . . . of baubles and gold,
to pamper your children when you're getting old?

A chemical tower? . . . An alcoholic's flask?
Political power? . . . A Jungian mask?

The answers are many . . . can they be all true?
That life is so different between me and you?

It's really quite simple . . . some day you will see
Life will be anything you chose it to be!

Sign of the Times

When the preacher and the rabbi
went fishing one fine summer day
they were being thoughtful citizens
and had posted signs to say . . .

*The end is coming very soon*
*Be mindful of your fate*
*You must turn yourself around*
*Before it is too late*

Flying down the gravel road
came a grimy old pick-up truck
with an angry red-neck driver
who was surely down on his luck

The driver yelled out the window
not wishing to atone
"Damn you stupid religious nuts . . .
just leave us all alone"

Before they could try to stop him
and prevent him from a crash
they heard his tires leave the road
and then they heard the splash

Knowingly they looked at each other
and then the preacher said
"maybe we should change the signs to read
*The*Bridge*Is*Out* instead"

by Ron Crowley
. . . author of laconic rhyme (terse verse)

Notice . . . All the poetry on these pages (unless written by others)
I have submitted for the public domain . . . Ron

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