The Book of Hope: Smile

There is something about your smile,
Intoxicating, yes,
Of course I agree.
But more, there is something mesmerizing,
or maybe revitalizing is a better word,
or even reassuring
is a word that make sense to me
because after all, what’s in a smile?
The answer:
More than you know
But please, allow me to explain.

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The Book of Hope: Love and Road Trips

I know that the world is a good place.
And I know that life could be better.
I know that not all things work out
the way we’d like them to.
But . . .
I also know that deep down, somehow,
there has to be a reason
and some kind of passion
or purpose for all that’s gone on.

There has to be desire and the drive “for more,”
and there has to be a calling,
as if to be something
or maybe there’s someone out there,
as if to say,
someone is calling out without a voice
and saying “Hey you . . . it’s me,
and I’ve been waiting for you,
for all of my life and longer.”

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The Book of Hope: En El Nombre Del Padre

I remember him now with the wind in his hair,
the sun was high, like it is on a mid-August day,
and the winds were warm,
or warm as ever because of the warmth in my heart.

The sky was clear,
and I was nothing more than a little boy,
wading in the water
and knee-deep in the bays of my youth.

I remember this:
fishing with my Father,
The Old Man.
What a story this is to me . . .

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The Book of Hope: For Mom

There is nothing like a Mother’s love
There is nothing as strong or as ongoing,
or unconditional, or so it should be,
at least in the right life
or during the right circumstances
of course.

Mother, as in all directing,
as in always connecting,
always thinking
and always looking to care of say, me, for example,
the young one, or should I say
the youngest son who, of course,
was different from the rest of the pack.

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The Book of Hope: Lincoln Road

I have seen the sun come through the clouds
when the sky is otherwise rainy
and yes, I have seen light shine
where otherwise
there would be no other way
to see light or to witness the shine.

And yes, I have been to bad places
or seen darker times and even still, somehow,
I have found that there is this unstoppable thing,
or this unwavering force,
and unrelenting to,
to which this keeps me alive
and moving and hoping and thinking
that somehow,
I just have to get through today.

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The Book of Hope: And So, It Begins

I know that it’s easy to see . . . .
It’s easy to see all of the things that can go wrong.
It’s easier to find the problems,
and often, it’s easier to note the problems
than it is to find the solutions, and man . . .
sometimes, it’s hard to see the sun
because the clouds are in the way.

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