Etches and Sketches

Remembering what it means to live

Etch your life
In the sands of time
leave your own imprint
as proof
of your existence

Personify self
actualize your being
sketch a purpose to
trade for meaning
fight on

Ahhh and yet

waves crash
sands shift
etches erode
lives progress

as we continue the search
for answers
and meaning

Ahhh and yet

we can
stop the search
instead perhaps
Enjoy -
- The brief gift of
Existence

A loving bestowal
asking for nothing
except for us
to flourish
to grow

and flow on

Reviews

[....................]

Yes, stop and enjoy life; don't worry about what's down the road because tomorrow is always a day away. I love the imagery in this piece and the message. Great write!

FT

[SilverCoatedBrass]

Favorite line "personify self" great peice!

[Terpsichore]

Three score year and ten, not even a blink of the creator's eye, but we can leave memories that last through the centuries. I have my great grandmother's Sunday School book. It contains little notes and comments, and a pretty good sketch of a small terrier type dog. No-one in the family is sure if it was her dog, but if it was, I'm sure he's in doggy heaven, which of course is right next to where my great grandma now abides.

Enjoyed reading this today. T

[Stephen]

And this`s all life... it`s `bout such redemption that`s meant to be 'lived' with remarkable memories of past. Very deep & heartfelt gestures of art you give to your work. Enjoyed reading it. Nice work as always!

[cimmy wuv xxxooo]

Beautiful poem about life and living.
Wise words i must say.
Life goes to fast we must cherish and enjoy it.
This is an inspiring and motivation piece.
I wish I could follow your advice, make the most out of life, though sometimes it is hard.
Great write :)

[KWP]

Hey There and why thank you for reading - and yeah it's hard sometimes but the thought I had just this morning was - if we live in the NOW (not always easy) we drop any other form of expectation, desire etc and we will know true love - happiness and contentment - takes practice me thinks - but I shall give it a wee shot XXX Cheers XX

[cimmy wuv xxxooo]

Very good thought :)
You have a positive mind set, not everyone has that, so good on you. read moreVery good thought :)
You have a positive mind set, not everyone has that, so good on you.
Your welcome anytime :)

[KWP]

one can only try right XX

[cimmy wuv xxxooo]

Right :) :) :)

[emmajoy]

Life is one huge adventure, sometimes calm, sometimes exhilerating.. sad, happy, glorious, insane and so forth. And, if we don't feel every wind or ray of sun, we've not felt what life really means. Mayhaps?

There's a calm, a stillness in your words, the lines brief but the meanings so worth thinking over.. for growing yet remaining content. Thank you.

[KWP]

ahhh hello Emmajoy and so lovely to meet you - thank you so much for taking the time to read ... I was aiming for a certain calm and stillness (actually as I am toward that each day - often falling off) I glad you felt that xx

[emmajoy]

Calmness seems so low in priorities sometimes; to read words then leave them feeling like a walking, 'Sighhhhhh.. that's better.' is wonderful!

[Frank]

I've come back to this poem three times now, wondering what to write, how to critique this work, how to treat it with respect as a serious work and I must say I am flummoxed.

At first glance I thought: a generic blueprint of how to come to terms with existence and hence telling not showing.

Second glance: there are elements that are valid and true i.e.
Stanza 1) Live and leave your mark in life
Stanza 2) Live to your uttermost (the warrior in you)
Stanza 3) But whatever you do life moves on and obliterates what you did achieve in the main

a reflection before continuing on 'ahh but'

Stanza 4) Stop fighting and enjoy life
Stanza 5) Acceptance

Negativity that picks holes on this philosophy, seemingly good philosophy: The Vikings left their mark, leaving half of Europe with Viking genes from their rape and pillage. So did the Nazis and Stalin not to forget Mao Tse-tung... but I know you did not mean any of them or to follow their example, but they did leave an indelible mark. They also fought with all their might meeting the advice in stanza 2. But I know you did not have them in mind as good examples of industry and warrior skills, but they were warriors.

Acceptance is a good thing, there is a time in life when we realise we cannot defend every cause, we also have to accept this ageing body rots and live with what we have-good advice. And to that extent religion has been pushing that advice for thousands of years, the Sermon on the Mount' being one excellent example.

The flow is a difficult one, how to flow on when dead. Religion offers hope in that respect, but also we live on or flow on in our children.

In one respect you have done an amazing job in succinctness, summing up tomes of religious writings in a simple poem that manages to offend no one by its blandness, and yet there is a valid philosophy and some good advice there.

I think possibly you have arrived at that point in your life and that tells us a lot about you, and as such i can echo what you say and say for myself: well done! There is a need at times to say things in a quiet way,

[KWP]

Hey again Frank :-) well yes you summed it up ... To say things in a quiet way ... That is most simply put what I am trying to achieve so I thank you ... As with the other thoughts
Well yes I have arrived at a point where I see religions are fictional (no disrespect) and I mean that of each and every one .. I have reached a point where I know that all I am is an expression of life in nature and whatever purpose or meaning I give to it is for
Me alone - but existence is indeed the greatest of gifts and I feel that one should
Perhaps no squander the short burst of now that we have .. As for the Vikings and Nazi's etc - well what can one say ... I prefer not to dwell
On the past and instead perhaps learn from it ... Unfortunately the human race hadnt really wired themselves for learning from
Our mistakes and progressing just yet - we are still
So infantile in existence I suppose - I do hope we figure it out before it's too late - BUT if we don't figure it out - well really it's no matter because at the end of the R
Day we are just a bunch of
Atoms rising and falling in line with the greater vitality of the universe and we shall
Indeed - flow on - in whatever form ..

I am still away and writing on my phone which is slowly dying so please forgive any typos - I do appreciate your honest thoughts - and promise to look at your works when I return home xx

[Frank]

OK, understood

[jacob erin-cilberto]

our lives flow on, we try to understand what it is all about---what our existence means, and that is not so easy when there is so much change all the time...the tides shift the sands and just as we think we figure out something about life, everything changes and there are new formations, outside forces...all we can really do is try to understand ourselves...and who we are.

[Einstein Noodle]

interesting snap shots ... we can etch our names in stone or bronze .. some may carry memories of our lives but over time those will dim and become a vague remembrances by family genealogists if we are lucky .. best just to "... flow on" :) thats my favorite line and my thought for the day ... flow on baby .. flow on!!
E.

[Onyia-Ali, Kingsley Chu..]

The quest of immortality. I so much appreciated the flow of wordings, and the arrangement of stanzas. The first stanza struck me most. Well done.

[KWP]

Thank you so much for reading - ad you enjoyed xx