on god and country
all well and good, to put god and country first
but what country does god own,
exactly?
and would he condone,
exactly,
what you're doing to keep it in his name?
maybe he just wants a dirt plot on mars.
ever ask him?
maybe he came and went years ago,
leaving us with instructions we'll never need.
maybe many folks have been gifted with signs and knowledge
that you'll never allow yourself to be gifted enough
to understand, or even try to read.
maybe when you piece them all together, you'll find that
no one has the answers
and that questioning everything
is more christian an act
than closing every answer out that you don't agree with.
maybe I'm wrong
and maybe you're right
and maybe we should just meet in the middle
and null each other out.
cuz maybe that's what god did already.
ever think of that?
Life is the question we all seek to answer...
August 7, 2009 11:27 PM | Reply | Permalink
I think of this all the time. LisB, who was Joan D'Arc? I mean she epitomizes god on one side of things.
It is absurd. Wonderful poem
Just wonderful!!!!!!!!!
August 7, 2009 11:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
Or if the politicians truly put God and Country first, what would our nation be like?
August 7, 2009 11:55 PM | Reply | Permalink
BTW- nice poem.
August 7, 2009 11:57 PM | Reply | Permalink
Thank you, and nice comment up above. Makes one think.
August 8, 2009 12:20 AM | Reply | Permalink
Very nice Lisb and thought provoking.
you say tomahto I say tomayto
I say potaytoe you say potahtoe
what if we are both right?
what if we are both wrong?
What if it is really a patootoo and a tamootoo?
Who will tell us Ping or Pong?
August 8, 2009 1:13 AM | Reply | Permalink
Like this one Lis - makes me really think. You have such a way of giving me food for thought. I would like to meet in the middle but not null each other out...........
August 8, 2009 1:29 AM | Reply | Permalink
Wowza!
August 8, 2009 1:56 AM | Reply | Permalink
Great poem Lissie. I wish I could rec this 20 times - but that would be wrong because it isn't my own post.
August 8, 2009 9:03 AM | Reply | Permalink
Leaving personal stuff aside, I wanna say this:
LisB is simply a wonderful poet.
Right here among us.
Nice! :)
August 8, 2009 11:28 AM | Reply | Permalink
Nice, Lis...thanks.
August 8, 2009 12:03 PM | Reply | Permalink
Thanks, LisB, for the catapult out of this awful rut! What a gift you have.
August 8, 2009 1:37 PM | Reply | Permalink
Thank you all, very much.
August 8, 2009 1:43 PM | Reply | Permalink
Thank you all, very much.
August 8, 2009 1:46 PM | Reply | Permalink
Oops, please pardon the double post.
August 8, 2009 2:53 PM | Reply | Permalink
No need to apologize. Even Elvis said:
August 8, 2009 3:34 PM | Reply | Permalink
LOL!!! Really, that made me laugh out loud. Good thing I wasn't chugging a beer at the time.
Thanks, Maty. Thankyouveramuch.
August 8, 2009 3:45 PM | Reply | Permalink
Would that those with hardened hearts would read and comprehend your poem! Well done Lis.
August 8, 2009 2:06 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yeah, but I have the feeling even if they did read it, they still wouldn't comprehend it.
But thanks, Oleeb.
August 8, 2009 2:54 PM | Reply | Permalink
Ah, jeez, LisB, I guess I am one of the ones who doesn't understand the poem. I do understand the difference between claiming to believe in God, trying/hoping to believe in God, and religion. But I don't understand the "meeting in the middle, and null each other out."
I did think I got "maybe He just wants a dirt plot on Mars." I sure liked that. Maybe I can only get poems when they are set to chords; a poetry-plebian am I.
August 8, 2009 3:14 PM | Reply | Permalink
Oh, gosh, even I can't understand my own poetry at times, Wendy, LOL...
What I was trying to get at, in that nulling each other out statement, was that I wish sometimes we didn't have all the left/right, atheist/christian, pro-choice/"pro-life" back and forth fighting, but that we could instead meet somewhere in the middle, find some common ground, and therefore put an end to having two sides constantly challenging each other.
But then, everything has an opposite, and I guess that's just the way it's gotta be. Just sucks sometimes, is all.
August 8, 2009 3:22 PM | Reply | Permalink
That's not at all what you meant, you have gotten it ENTIRELY wrong,
August 8, 2009 4:45 PM | Reply | Permalink
Okay, okay, you caught me. I'm agnostic. And I was feeling bitter at the time.
Heh heh.
But do not presume to know what's in my head, Jonnie, cuz even I don't.
August 8, 2009 6:29 PM | Reply | Permalink
We're about even on that last count.
The great thing about art is the artist truly has no control over the impact felt.
Loved your poem, by the way.
August 8, 2009 7:04 PM | Reply | Permalink
Well thank you, dear. I will read it again a few times now. Maybe a bit of the tao you'd like; a bit of yin in the yang, and a bit of yang in the yin. I always picture those symbols as sort amorphous and changing, where the balance can keep shifting with either situations or intentions.
Maybe that is what bother me so about the strong conflicts we are experience: so little intention to quit guarding our psychic borders; so little intention to hear The Other. To imagine being that other person, deciphering what life events contributed to being who they are, trying on their life a bit, and finding a way under their defenses. Intention. It can work one-on-one, but it is hard work, and often fails anyway. Damn it.
August 8, 2009 6:03 PM | Reply | Permalink
Well that's what made me write it. The fact that, recently, one side (in this case, the Right) is suddenly inciting violence and then blaming the Left for "teaching" them how to do it. While we, meanwhile, are just trying peaceably to get the word out in non-violent ways.
The Right saw how well Obama's campaign worked its grass roots participants, and now there's "Americans for Prosperity" turning the tables on us.
They were able to copy, but not to put themselves in our shoes and see WHY we all banded together to put Obama in office. They don't CARE why. They have no empathy. They just claim to be Christians and, therefore, it's all in the name of God and it's all for the good of our country.
Bull.
August 8, 2009 6:24 PM | Reply | Permalink
That's why I included the comprehend part. Reading it and not being able to "get it" isn't enough for the hard hearted.
August 8, 2009 3:54 PM | Reply | Permalink
Great poem, LisB!
In my estimation, "religion" and "God" have often been at odds with one another. Shows the way in which we can pervert anything if we work hard enough at it.
And by the way.... God is on my side! ;O)
August 8, 2009 2:28 PM | Reply | Permalink
Nice, LisB, thanks for sharing your poem with us.
August 8, 2009 3:12 PM | Reply | Permalink
Peace. Shalom. Salaam. Shanti. Ashti. Dohiyi.
August 8, 2009 3:15 PM | Reply | Permalink
Peace to you too, Ripper.
August 8, 2009 3:18 PM | Reply | Permalink
I love this poem, Lis. I'm coming back to it a second time and probably will a third.
It is a strange phenomenon this rampant vilification and demonization. And it's doubly strange that religion is such a strong force in feeding the flames. If anything is at the heart of religion it's awe in the face of the mysteries of the universe. It's a recognition of ourselves as finite flawed little creatures - men and women of little mind, and demands above all humility from all of us. And yet it's used as a hammer of hard certainties which sees evil in all those who don't share one's personal doctrines. There's a quote I keep knocking around in my head, though I've forgotten where it comes from - "One should always respect the other man's religion just as one respects his belief that his wife is beautiful and his children gifted". Or something like that. Captures nicely the balance between knowing your mind and having an understanding for the cares and concerns that inform for better or worse the opinions of others.
August 8, 2009 4:25 PM | Reply | Permalink
I hereby rec this comment. You're awfully smart, for a pug. xoxo.
August 8, 2009 4:32 PM | Reply | Permalink
Seconded, except for the xoxo, I'm not kissin' that dog.oooo
August 8, 2009 4:49 PM | Reply | Permalink
Thirded? "it's used as a hammer of hard certainties which sees evil in all those who don't share one's personal doctrines."
Pug's choice,a kiss or kibble.
August 8, 2009 9:35 PM | Reply | Permalink
((((swoooooon))))
Kisses and kibbles, what a fine morning to wake up to...
;0)
August 9, 2009 8:33 AM | Reply | Permalink
Well done, LisB! :-)
August 8, 2009 5:21 PM | Reply | Permalink