The worth of Woman

A woman valued

nourishes the sun 

and smoothes a path 

for those behind

where nettles once grew.

jfrancis  1.7.2011

WHY MESSIAH

The grains of time

fall on a dying world, 

the hour all but gone

the glass near spent,

when man’s choice

casts his die

toward eternity.

jfrancis

1.14.2011

The Storm

blew in

out of a sunset 

laying our saplings

near the ground.

The rest

was standard fare___

except the ending

when that rainbow

wrapped its arms

around the setting sun.

jfrancis

1.15.2011

SonWorship

Not

a place or time

to rest the bones___

though

it should be

a restful place

to engage

the face o G-d

in our spirit

and touch

the spirit

of his Son

today.

jfrancis

1.17.2011

Keats

Fame doth claim

many a mortal soul___

and earth knows not

what is gone

till sinews of time

lift immortality

above the rhyme.

jfrancis

1.19.2011

In search of Home

where Love

blossoms a desert

with peace,

and peace

breaks shackles

of hatred

which enslave lands

and divide

the ancient family

of Abraham,

until history

well sated

opens the heart of terror

with Messiah and Grace.

jfrancis

1.25.2011

Snow

Love is not gone___

once kindled,

it lives beyond

and returns

with the magic

of each

February whiteness.

jfrancis

2.5.2011

Breath of Spring

Winter dies

as the goose flies

and spring awakens

the wildflower seed

for a journey 

through the heart and mind 

of humankind

where creation

paints the flowers

with man’s emotion.

jfrancis

2.6.2011

Egyptian Bondage

Free the body

and the soul soars___.

It is old 

as the sand of time

that flows 

through the glass

to become

a flight of the heart

on tattered wings of hope.

jfrancis

2.12.2011

Lyric or Law

When angels fly

humanity takes note.

Both lowly bard

and prophet king

know the voice of God.

jfrancis

2.14.2011

The King is Coming

Great with child,

fear also,

then words of angelic wonder

calm the twisting turmoil

of her spirit nature

as faith

opens the eyes

of her heart

to see Messiah,

a Son of David,

whose kingdom

will never end.

jfrancis,

Luke 2.16.2011

The Plan

Heavenly beauty

Through a veiled mist

Of personality and charm

Awakened my heart

To blessing 

God hath wrought

In such a place

Of fragile wonderment

And still the mystery

Wraps itself

Round my whole being

Yet gives room enough

To drink only

From the spring

Sparkling before me.

Jfrancis

3.5.2011

The Vows

Love to last,

A shared connection

Wrapping round

Vows never lost

But broken still

By pain of heart

Which death

Pries apart.

Jfrancis

3.13.2011

The Life

Never done, never done___

Maintenance  of marriage

Consumes passion

And excitement

Years do not.

Life and love

Wear the fabric

Threadbare and faded

Beyond the early year 

When effort required

Only warmth and touch

To right the ship.

At the end

Parting becomes

That sweet sorrow

Poets dream of.

Jfrancis 

3.14.2011

Tree of the Way

Legends are large

As the dogwood

Whose body

Fashioned the cross

And shame___

And became

A symbol of both

To dwell in the shadow

Of most 

And never repeat 

The horror of Golgotha

Where life died

And death became

A blossom

Nailed

To the tree of life.

Jfrancis

3-20-2011

Living

(inside a fairy tale)

Fairy tales

Are not real___

Only the characters

Who bring life 

To a child’s world.

Jfrancis

3.31.2011

“The Valley of the Shadow”

Death brings us

To that winding road

Where life missed

A serious turn

And now

The pieces are scattered 

Beyond the reach of time.

The small white cross

Marks a place

Not of our choosing

So God gathers the pieces

Binds them in to one,

As fathers do,

And gives the heartbeat

To eternity.

Jfrancis

4.4.2011

In Defense of Love

Love__

A pure emotion

Often misuse 

For personal gain,

None the less

Our hearts enshrine

This worthy creation

In the highest regard,

For no other passion

Of the heart

Moves man

To embrace

Another fair creature

Till death parts.

Jfrancis

4.18.2011

“Never into Nothingness”

Poetry 

Cast in gold

Hammered on leaf

Has not grief

But permanence

And moonlight

On lovers heads,

Pounding hearts

Almost

Never ceased__

Painted with

The broadest brush

Of eternity

Where poets rest

And we come, refreshed.

Jfrancis

4.21.2011

FLIGHTPATH

Children move

As the bouncing ball

Where gravity works

Part time 

And the butterfly

Flits

Totally unaware

Their footprint 

On the flowersMove our world forward.

Jfrancis

8.3.2011  

Age__

A rather

Slow creature

Given to stealth,

Disguised by time,

Until we are wrapped

In the gentle arms

Of weakness.

Jfrancis

8.14.2011

Journey

The distance to Love

From affection

Is the space

Of a heartbeat.

Jfrancis

8.19.2011

Rising Love

Love is. . . .

A knowing in the heart    

Gifted

With patience

Surrounded 

By soft words

Saturated

With forgiveness__

Bound together

By spirit

That wakes the morning

And paints each day

Of the eastern horizon

In colors

Of a burning brush.

Jfrancis

8.22.2011

Eternity 101

Life is serious__

So much so

Ignoring eternity

Is a flailing of the wind

For the wind blows 

Without regard         

To human desire

And does not fail

To remind you,

Eternity

Is the day

Of your death.

Jfrancis

8.24.2011

Winning Hand

What you’re dealt

Is why you’re in the game 

And this game

Is not chance

But choice

And sacrifice

And creation’s business.     

Each soul

Has gold to spend

Odds to beat

Time to burn

Grace to purchase

For free__

For the tree

Is cheap

And precious

And chosen

By me.

Jfrancis

9.3.2011

Meeting Death

A poem commemorating
the tenth anniversary
of the 9/11 terrorist acts.

(in the air)

Life comes

On angel wings

With pain

And euphoria__.

These

Are the good years

Of bonding and struggle

Producing worth

In human form.

Worth for sacrifice,

If we must,

Sacrifice in service

As duty requires;

In the air,

On the stair

Where death lingered

Far beyond the dust

And digging,

Death multiplied thrice.

Now the years

Lay waste,

For the worth lost,

The bones scattered

In our valley

Of grief.

Jfrancis

9.9.2011

Sparkling Eyes

The beginning__

Still and silent

Yet portends

The heart rending

To come.

Softly

The shoulders shake

As moisture appears

In a single sparkling

Rivulet,

Moistens the mascara

For effect,

And the heart it takes

By storm

Is doomed

To fail

Or swoon.

Jfrancis

9.15.2011

Watching the Grass Grow

Requires patience. . . . . . . . . . . .

bunnies and their foodstuff

a real quilt

the sun with shade

and a vacant heart

to be filled

with the song

of God’s quietness.

jfrancis

6.28.08

Time to Pass

God gives his world

Time to pass

Wrapped in families

With leisure to love

And laugh

For the joys of life

Where the woods and water

Borrow the summer days

To construct

Hallowed halls

Of times past

Where the crisp days

Of October

Grow our boys

Into men.

Jfrancis

10.6.2011

Fall Silent

In your desert

Between

Silence and emotion

The song

Of G-d’s quietness

Can be found

In the bass clef notes

Of a desert breeze.

Here he speaks

In a silence

Only you can hear.

Jfrancishill

Lschneider