Jim Yerman

I recently ran across a list Deborah and I created long ago
It contained the dreams for our perfect house...our ideal bungalow.

We called it our North Carolina Love Nest and it was to be our creed
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There was once an ancient Chinese philosopher sitting under a crooked old tree
Who spoke on the subject of judging others, and how we need to think differently.

“When this tree was younger, ” he said, “it caused many people to gape
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The following words are not written to disparages cats or birds or frogs
or any other animal for that matter…it's just, in my opinion…
there's something about a dog!
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Today allow me to reveal a universal truth.
A truth some of you, I'm sure, have already known:
Love is transcendental…
with a power and an energy all its own.
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We live in a world that doesn’t slow down, it’s seems everyone’s in a hurry
Which causes us lots of stress, lots of anxiety, and an abundance of worry.

We worry about money, our health, our children, we worry about being late
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As parents…regular and grand we've come to understand
We live a life of schedules…where so much of it is planned.

Yet with our aging eyes we still can recognize
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I believe in synchronicity and the wonders therein contained…
I believe in angels and miracles and the mystery of the unexplained.

Chrissy was a friend of our daughter…growing up their friendship was like glue…
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When they fell in love he felt blessed to find a person he adored.
He couldn't control his happiness…he'd never felt such love before.

He thought he loved her more than anyone could love her…
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Death came earlier than expected...
we begged...
we pleaded...
we prayed
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It is said life is one big circle which begins with our first breath
the circle then completes itself the moment of our death

Many of us begin our circle…when but a little time has passed
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There once was a writer named Lear
With the first name of Edward...I fear
He was English...I say
He wrote Limericks every day
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I write love poems about sunrises, sunsets…
about the clouds the moon and the sea…
because their beauty and their magnificence constantly inspire me.
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I know this from experience. I heard it from my father's tongue.
Noting makes a person sound older than saying, "When I was young."

You go through life thinking, I'll never say those words, that's what old people do.
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I remember being fascinated by animals when I was a child
enchanted by the things I'd hear and see…
I never understood back then…all the things they were teaching me.
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All my life I’ve heard the groans yes, since I was a little one
Because for as long as I can remember I’ve been enamored with the pun.

For instance the other day Deborah and I were out discussing bees
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There was an anthropological study conducted on the children of an African tribe…
that I shall attempt as best I can…in this poem…to now describe.

A basket of fruit was placed under a tree…the children told to be fast and resolute
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Whenever my life seems out of balance…when things are difficult for me…
I remember I am loved…and rediscover life's symmetry.

Whenever the music of my life is out of tune…when I lose the melody…
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She loved visiting her grandma…at Grandma's everything just seemed right…
She especially loved those times she got to spend the night.

Because as she grew she began to find comfort in the wisdom of Grandma's words…
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In the middle of my walk this morning…as my health I try to maintain…I was greeted from the heavens…with an unexpected rain.

It's funny how it works…as the first raindrops and you collide…you immediately look around…for a safe, dry place to hide.
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If I could choose one type of love for two people to share that would allow them throughout their life together to be happy…to rejoice…one love above all others…
then tree love would be my choice.

Tree love begins when two seeds of love are planted together…how it happens…no one really knows…but once planted side-by-side, like two trees, their love begins to grow.
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