The heart transplant went flawlessly, you would have guessed.
The surgeon’s work left many very impressed.
For the patient’s part,
He had a change of heart.
But came in for an X-ray of his chest.
Author: NDExile
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Not Your Father’s Retreads
Developed a tire with stainless steel tread.
Available in colors blue, green or red.
High marks for customer satisfaction.
Really slick when it comes to traction.
They’ll look great in any flowerbed.
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You say “Bitter”, I say, “Better”
Twas an entrepreneur from Anchor Bay.
Desired a high I.B.U. in his IPA.
He spared no expense I must confide,
Negotiating price on the higher side.
To the chagrin of his CPA.
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Clean Bill of Sale
There was a car owner on Oak Street.
Wanted a car cleaned meticulously, complete.
When finished with their gyrations,
The experts exceeded expectations.
Providing a detailed receipt.
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I Salute You!
Our homeland has changed, things are different, it’s not the same as before.
Leaders today serve themselves, there is interest in the people no more.
I swore to protect and defend our constitution, from enemies within and without.
I promised to obey the orders of the president and the officers appointed over me; I did so with no doubt.
Serving under leaders that I didn’t choose, is what, by oath I said I’d do.
I wasn’t just defending the constitution, I was protecting our way of life too.
At the start of each day, in days now long gone, when Ol’ Glory was run up the flagpole,
I saluted the flag and prayed to God, “Please keep our nation undivided and whole.”
I didn’t see the president or the officers when I honored the Red, White and Blue.
What I saw was my family, my friends and the thankful ones like you.
By your gratitude I’ve been blessed beyond hope, exceeding all human measure.
Your appreciation, your kind words, your thanks, are a veteran’s greatest treasure.
You thank me for what I’ve done. I thank you for what you do.
To keep our nation great requires a lot more people like YOU!
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Power of Majic
When it comes to secret abilities I don’t want 9 lives like a domestic cat.
I’d like to have the power to pull a rabbit out of my hat.
Perhaps I’d be a contortionist and escaped from locked shackles and chains.
Then again I’d like to jump unharmed form airborne aero planes.
To possess such powerful abilities makes me rather afeared.
Did you notice; the great magicians and illusionists of the past have disappeared?
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I wish I had
What’s a secret skill or ability you have or wish you had?
When it comes to secret abilities, I always feel I’m under duress.
The most sought after, the most desirable, is the most likely I’ll never possess.
It’s eluded man since the dawn of creation.
Yet it’s sought after by men of every earthly nation.
It would be the Holy Grail, benefitting all of mankind.
I wish I could understand the complexity of a woman’s mind.
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What’s in a word?
Words can be amazing, whether spoken or written on the page.
Like the stroke of the artist’s brush, they paint calm, they can stir up rage.
When the words, as the harpists fingers, skillfully strike the chords of the human heart
They can resonate most beautifully, sounding joy, thus fulfilling their intended part.
When the words arrive like the sound of a horn, in a never-ending blare,
They can numb the heart with their discord, driving out the peace that once was there.
If the words that I send find harmony, to continue simply answer, “yes”.
If the words are an endless blare, a simple “no” will put them to rest.
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Change – Reflection on Quarantine
Today as I entered these portals,
Gone was the rhythm of life.
I slowly walked in silence;
Unsettled by a personal strife.
The quietness, though pleasing to the ear,
Evokes contention in my heart.
The silence speaks of a void,
Amplifying the greater, missing part.
What is missing is the spirit of humanity;
The vitality, the emotions, the care.
What the soul creates within itself,
Is does with the intent to share.
Gone are my colleagues, away are my friends,
Absent are those I assist.
To whom shall I give, from whom shall I receive?
How long will this struggle persist?
Change is taking place all around.
Its impact is quite easy to see.
The most far-ranging and difficult change,
Is the one to occur in me.
The outcome of this battle within,
Will lead to transformation and change.
A longing for the life that once was so familiar,
Is antagonized by a reality so strange.
Note: this reflection was inspired by a visit to the office building I had worked in for 10 years.Due to the quarantine of 2019 – 2020 it was unoccupied at the time of my visit.
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Matthew the Tax Collector
Matthew the tax collector
In first century Palestine, revenue collection was rife with extortion and fraud.
Rendering its gains to an emperor, a mortal man, who likened himself to a god.
Whatever what the character and virtue of the tax collector might be,
He held the lowest place in an Orthodox Jewish society.
After a long day at the customs post he noticed a great crowd passing by.
Like them, he would become a disciple of Jesus, this son of Alphaeus, the one named Levi.
They had heard the Word of God, Jesus taught them down by the sea.
Then Jesus himself passed by the post. He said, “Levi come and follow me.”
Without hesitation, he rose up from his seat; he left everything that day.
From that point onward to find Levi, just find Jesus and the disciples onThe Way.
With gratitude toward Jesus for his new found life and vocation,
Levi opened his house for all to dine and join in celebration.
The scribes and pharisees were too self-righteous to join in.
How could they eat with tax collectors and those guilty of sin?
“Hey Jesus, why don’t you eat with us, instead of with sinners like these?”Replied our Lord, “I came not for the healthy, but for those afflicted with disease.”
Like a lamb, the tax man knew the voice of the one he had heard.
He put aside family and livelihood to follow the true, Living Word.
The Ethereal Scupper 