“Good-by, Good-by, world. Good-by, Grover’s Corners… Mama and Papa. Good-by to clocks ticking… and Mama’s sunflowers. And food and coffee. And new-ironed dresses and hot baths…and sleeping and waking up. Oh, earth, you’re too wonderful for anybody to realize you.” ― Thornton Wilder, Our Town

I woke today in a very peaceful yet reflective mood, lamenting about how fleeting life can be, thinking of the beauty in the grandiose as well as the mundane. That made me start thinking about cemeteries. Have you ever visited a cemetery for no reason? Maybe you visited a historical site and found yourself strolling amongst stones of strangers who lived far before your time. Walking around a place where nature lives on yet people do not is a humbling experience. It makes you realize whatever worry that had occupied your mind really doesn’t matter in the scheme of the universe. As I continue on with My Change For A Ten, I think it is important to look at things from a different vantage point every now and then, that is where you find the courage to go forward, that is where you find your perspective.  Gratitude sometimes comes from knowing how lucky we really are. This poem I wrote it a little dark, but sometimes you have to face the eyes of ebony without fear, and then the sunshine will finally reveal itself to you;  but only when you have learned to appreciate the light of daily life. 

Photo Linda Monteleone’ who is contributing photos for my poetry book

DISEASED
Everyday we awaken, we are terminal.
Temporarily renting our bodies,
forever coveting our souls.
Our breath, countdown
to our very last gasp.
We dine, maybe eating our last supper.
Our insides weep, yet we hold
a stellar performance of smiles and satisfaction,
withholding the inevitable outcome.
Death looms in the shadows
stalking us, living prey with plans
to be abandoned with cold wreaths and stones.
Cemetery holds the final court,
waiting for yet another of times demise;
Still as the silence that surrounds
the mausoleum at midnight.
Left behind and forgotten,
as a lone barren tree
taunts with its lingering longevity;
shadowing the pillars and graves
that lie void of life and energy.
(c) Rose Bruno Bailey

Taking life for granted – we are all guilty from time to time. It is easy to get lost in self pity and forget how magnificent it is to awaken each and every morning to the sunrise and the aroma of a fresh pot of brewed delicious coffee. As I continue on with my My Change For A Ten workouts, I realize I may not be the best runner but I am thankful for  my two legs that can walk; running will come soon enough. The little things make up just as much satisfaction in our lives as the major moments. Forget fearing the future and live in the present. Loving, being loved is the absolute greatest feeling we can experience ever, no matter a prince or a pauper. This we should never forget, even in our lapses of appreciation of the blessing of life and this perfect earth we call home.
Love and light
Rose Bruno Bailey