Jim Yerman Poems

I once thought that being an adult meant being a child was no longer allowed…that trying to re-capture our childhood would be like trying to hold on to a cloud.

Now I know each day we rise…as we welcome in a new day…the child in us has been changed…but they are never far away.
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Chuang Tzu (pronounced shuwang zee) was an ancient Chinese philosopher…when one night a vivid dream appeared before his sleeping eyes…in his dream he was not Chuang Tzu anymore…he was a butterfly.

After experiencing a dreamworld where he flew from flower to flower…where he felt so innocent and free…he awoke only to find he was not that butterfly…instead he was Chuang Tzu.
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I remember Grandpa…when our family gathered at his house…as our joy and laughter filled the air…we would always find him smiling…sitting in his favorite chair.

I remember how he'd smile…listening to new stories…or stories we retold…when I was young I figured that's what Grandpas do when Grandpas get that old.
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On my walk this morning a tiny cloud caught my eye
And I found myself stopping to watch it on its trip across the sky.

It seemed a little shaky at first…not much movement there at all…
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She loved those quiet moments together…loved the rainbow of colors they chose
when Mom would color her nails…and Dad would paint her toes.

It was during these quiet moments when it seemed to her like time suspended.
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As I watch many world religions fight, acting inhumane and cruel
It makes me ask the question, what’s happened to the Golden Rule?

Countries at war with one another, soldiers dying, a world of dread
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Do you believe trees have feelings? I do. It's part of my malady.
Basically, I give human characteristics to everything I see.

I was born with this affliction and I own it with dignity and grace
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When I was young I thought it would be great if I could be a hero...
The one who slays the dragon, or defeats the invincible foe.

The guy who saves the baby from the burning building before she’s engulfed in flames
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The other day Deborah and I were discussing the wonders in America we can see.
We realized how lucky we were to live in a land where we were free.

A land where freedom allows us to come and go as we please
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When we dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima back in 1945
80,000 people died instantly the rest thought they were lucky to be alive.

But, after the bomb, radiation rained like it had never rained before.
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