HOW DO YOU LIVE YOUR DASH ?

I knew a man who rose to speak
at the funeral of a friend
he referred to the dates on the headstone
from the begining, to the end

He noted that first came the birth date
then he recited the second date with tears
then he said what mattered most of all
was that little dash, between those years

For that dash represents, all the time
that his friend had lived here on earth
and now only those that loved his friend
know how much that dash was worth

For it matters not how much we own
the cars, the house, the cash.....
what matters most is how we live and love
and how we spend 'our' dash

If we think about this long and hard
are there things we would like to rehash?
For you never know how much time is left
It can run out in a flash

If we could only slow down enough
to consider what's true and real
and always try to understand
the way, that other people feel

Be less quick to turn to anger
show your appreciation a little more
mostly to love the people in our lives
like we've never loved before

If we treat each other with respect
and more often wear a smile
remembering that this special dash
might only last a little while

So when our eulogy is being read
and our life's actions they rehash
would we be proud of the things they'll say
about how we spent our dash?

Author anonymous and Bob Dever, (with a little unsolicted editing by Jeff)

Sacred sites

If I’d a been born with brown skin
Instead of this shade of white
My elders would have told me
Where I have some sacred site

But I was born a gubba man
With no elders to show the light
So my spirit grew up unguided
Had to find my own sacred site

A Sacred site is a place
Where one can go for peace
When troubles hit like a hammer
And you need some quiet release

A place that was there
When I was a child
That still exists as it was
Is still free and wild

My sacred site
Is at the end of whiting street
Where the ocean meets the shore
And the sand is my seat

I sat there when my little brother
Got hit crossing the street
My Aunty was in trouble
For he was hit on her beat

I sat there after I was burnt
When my brother set me on fire
I was there when my heart first broke
Found out my girlfriend was a liar

I took several girls there
When I learnt to drive in cars
I used to go there often
When I learnt to drink in bars

It’s where I learnt to go fishing
How to bait a line
When I found out Dad had no patience
And I developed mine

It’s where I learnt to swim
And stand on a surfboard
Where I found 20 bucks once
And got a 2 dollar reward
It’s where I took my kids
When they were small
Now they go there themselves
To the grand and have a ball

It’s where Irene and I
Met on our first date
right near Baskin Robbins
After a two week wait

For forty years now
It has been my sacred site
I always return there
It helps me think it out right

Yes it’s my sacred site
My one stable friend
I’m sure it will still be there
After my life finds it end

Copyright Jeffrey Goudy. Poetry in Paradise. Reg Trade Mark No 1028534-- 15/11/09