Treading Water in the Sea of Status Quo


turning slowly
round and round I go
treading water
in the sea of status quo

forward
backward
where to go 

the simple truth

I just don’t know

but a voice, deep inside of me

growls

don’t give up, there’s more to be

I sigh and paddle, straight and true
into a world forever blue
perhaps I’ll meet something, someone new

maybe even you


tio stib

Promises

I told myself things would be so
I made this promise years ago

yet, in the waining of my days
that youthful zeal has lost its gaze

the hopes, the dreams of star crossed eyes
buried under life’s goodbyes

but I was loved
held heart close
by angels whom I treasured most

for when I came to be
another promise made to me
a force beyond what I could see
has filled my life with ecstasy


tio stib

Fantasyland is Closed Today

there are dreams 
and there are fantasies

the first, possibilities
the second, delusions

but what is the difference?
what is the line that, once crossed
leads to a spiraling descent into
frustration, depression, 

emptiness

What is the difference between fantasies and adventures?

in the beginning, perhaps nothing
but
somewhere along the way
you begin to hear a voice
a stirring
a thought

a question?

and, if you stop and pay attention
the voice gets louder

until
finally
you open your mind to see
the sign in front of your life

Fantasyland is closed today


tio stib

Waiting for the world


another project out the door
another time I’ve said

no more

and as I sit and catch my breath
there comes a sense of creeping death
for even though I’ve done my best
placed my work above the rest
crossed the t’s and dotted i’s

standing clear before my eyes
the naked truth won’t be disguised

in the flood of current books
mine won’t entice a second look

so
in a day
perhaps two
I’ll start fresh
begin anew
write some more
it’s what I do

because the world’s unlikely to come through 

and

holding my breath
is turning me blue


tio stib

The Blind Side Parables 28 – Passwords

Security precautions require that you reset your password

Enter new password

letmein

Passwords require at least one capital letter

Pleaseletmein

Passwords require at least one symbol

Pleaseletmeinnow!

Passwords require at least one number

1moretimePleaseletmeinnow!

Your session has expired
Please begin again


Moral: When computers start changing passwords just to mess with us, it’s over.


tio stib

The Blind Side Parables 26 – Why Geese Fly in a V-formation:

“Gramps, why do geese fly in a V?”

The pair were sitting together on a shoreline bench when they’d heard the loud honking behind them. Now, a flock of geese, in a telltale V formation, flew over their heads.

“That’s a very good question, Max,” the old man responded.

There was a pause as the older man and his grandson watched a sky filled with honking, flapping V’s sweep by.

“First, geese are cooperative creatures. By flying in a “V” form, they greatly reduce their collective air resistance and so increase their flight range.

Man and boy continued to stare upward as more and more formations of geese rushed past.

Gramps continued, “The goose at the head of the V is not necessarily the leader of the flock. Geese take turns leading. As one bird tires, it drops to the back of the formation and another takes its place. Flying in a V-form increases visibility as each bird can see what’s happening in front of them. Now that’s teamwork.”

The boy considered this information, then asked, “But why do they honk so much?”

Gramps smiled, “When flying, geese honk to provide recognition to each other helping them maintain speed and stay in formation.

There was silence as the last of the migrating geese faded into the clouds.

The boy sighed, “All those geese getting along, flying in formation, getting where they need to go, nothing like the traffic jams Dad complains about driving to and from work. Why don’t people cooperate like the geese do?”

The old man put an arm over the boy’s shoulder and hugged him, “another very good question.”


Moral: In Nature, the truth is plain to see.


tio stib

You might also enjoy: Do It Anyway; The Blindside Parables 22 - Life is Like a Broken Egg