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COLLECTION THREE

MOMENTS OF LIFE

L. E. SHAFFER

"Daisy"
September 11, 1998

Still remember fondly
That bright day
When a white kitten
Came home

And took over
So soon
Our hearts
Our home

Just seemed natural
To call her Daisy
So beautiful
And full of spirit

Eyes aglow
Voice a tinkle
And the years
Scampered away

And now she owns
Us all
The world over
Wonderful creature

So many knew her
And loved her
Her passing
Made us cry

Yet a white cat
Steps onto a dazzling
Bridge full of rainbows
Daisy looks back but once...

"The Calling"
March 15, 1998

Oh, sweet long ago
In the warmth
Of a mother's love
Expectation so high

The calling comes
In a place sublimely
Between heaven and hell
And to be called

One step follows another
A moment of sanity
So sweetly spent
Oh, to be called

The calling comes
On swift thoughts
Minds ablaze
With destiny

And there the light
The dark so near
The calling
Stronger, ever stronger

Dazzled by blind faith
The calling begets
The enlightened followers
And the one called

Where does one begin
When is the ending of this
Eyes struck blind
From the knowing
The faithful calling

"What is This Life"
July 17, 1998

What life is this
When age means nothing
Time kills surely, slowly
Emotion overwhelms the heart

O, precious life
Sing to me
Of good memories
And, yes, the sad too

What is this life
But pain and misery
Wonder why to go on
O, tears drown the care

O, life live on in me
For I know grown old
The end should be near
What is this, life!

And star-sung song
Plays again and again
Bass pulsing my heart
How can this be joy and sadness

Can life bear all the pain
With the good, the love, the joy
What makes no sense
Increases the mystery

What is this life
But a fleeting gift
Between you and me
And the living is all
There is left to do

"Back When"
May 6, 1998

Remember when
We were so young
So alive, full of delight
In that great back when

Chin in hand
Studying life
O, but a tear
Here and there

Reflections in our eyes
That sparkle of love
In that great back when
And the song is sung

O, we do get older
Yes, weary and tired
Only memories fresh
And many children anew

Time when
We smiled
Laughed at
The great beyond

It was so far
But now so near
And melancholy
Fills the air

And every memory
Evokes new emotions
Even through happy tears
In the great back when

"Shining Eyes in the Dark"
February 8, 1998

Shimmering dusk
Wind sounds guttural
And alone, forlorn
Then the moon uncovers

Shadows grow long
And disappear slowly
Night creatures stretch
And begin their prowl

Darkness fills every valley
The trees settle in the breeze
Moonshine in a dim droplet
In a sea of black

Mists form drowsily
And eyes open in the dew
Shining, penetrating, hunting
Those eyes knowing

Shining eyes in the dark
Glowing brightly
Those ovals and embers
Burning hot for the hunt

Hungering for the kill
Shining eyes in the dark
Move perceptively closer
Soundless smooth creeping

Frozen in the dark soup
Stirring the mists only
Shining eyes in the dark
Knowing only you . . . 

"Always Blue"
January 29, 1998

Something to hold us in sway
Something new and old
Always blue, ripe with fear
And so alone, so lonely

We came by this way
Only once to look behind
At what was and is
Something we surely missed

Tearing our gaze away
For fear of the years
All running away
And we look ahead

This journey just begun
Now so near the end
Only a tear and a smile
O, we can't stop . . . 

Something to behold
That time cannot erase
So blissfully ignorant
Of what lies ahead

We only smile for a while
The moment gone now
And finally we do give up
All was so utterly preordained

So now we may
Break out in song
As another journey begins
This journey to the very edge

"What is Beyond Old"
February 2, 1998

Rain attacks the ground
Wind buffets dwellings of men
Hail explodes from the sky
Lightning streaks the dark

Thunder gives vent to a cry
That of fear and trembling
That of dark and terror
That which is not there

Into this forbidden zone
Lurks the evil of human minds
Gathered upon the storm
Wicked knowing and frothing

Eyes glow on the horizon
Howls pierce the wail of the storm
Where there is no one
Hunts the unreal dark

Shattering darkness
Stabs the night
And into dank caves
Does go our thoughts

Back to the forming
Back to forever
Back to purity
Once that was lost

Rain pelts strongly
What it does not know
But the humans turn
And understand what is beyond old

"Moments of Life"
January 20, 1998

An ember dies quickly
A thought here and gone
Life but a frail moment
Eternity in that one moment

And we live our lives
From day to days
Year to years
Until life fades away

O, moments of life
Here and there
They are so fleeting
Life but a moment

Spend it wisely and quickly
In one who hopes and cries
And dreams it all away
Those over before they were

Then yet we are
Those moments of life
So pure and simple
Over before we began

Why hope
Why struggle
Why hate
Why even love

Ah, but for that one moment
There we were once again
And we hold on so tightly
To each moment that is ours

Publication date: January 2001
Author: L. E. Shaffer
Company: Shaffer Novels/Poetry Company
COPYRIGHT 1998 - 2007, 2008 L. E. Shaffer
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED WORLDWIDE
PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
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