Sonnet : "It Is What It Is"

Sonnet : "It Is What It Is"

When, the real cast of actors leaves us down
Acting out their personal part in life's schemes;
Will we seek what we wish to see come around
Finding the play's truthful to all Man's dreams :

Then, as a slap across the face would bring a welt
We pause, feeling hurt, we reach out for answers.
"It is what it is". The plays are similar, actors melt
Into history, but in life only seven scenes, my sirs :

And then, accepting that which only we can control,
We look, listen, interpret, we respond with an action.
Finding our bearings, speaking out, always on patrol
Each day surveying "The Field Of Dreams" for traction.

Accepting early enough in a lifespan your limitations
Makes time pass more easily bypassing complications.

Ronald C. Downie

The Modern Sonnet

The Modern Sonnet

These days the sonnet has taken on a modern perspective; unlike in the days of Shakespeare when sonnets spoke mostly of love in all its particulars, sonnets written these days are capturing every aspect of life and thought.

They're written with a rhyming fourteen line scheme and swagger to foot and meter. But, the true beauty of the modern sonnet lies in the shortness of its length, about a minute in time to read a standard one.

These days poets are promoting their books by this notion of shortness, calling them, an hour of verse. Sixty poems at a minute each creates an hour of reading if done with no interruptions, that's the hook. Who would read a poem just by mouthing written words ? Sonnets are as addictive as most other types of written verse; they too draw the reader in to read again, to capture a reader's mental state, to pause and reflect a proposition the author presents.

Authors are not fools neither are publishers. They know purchasers of poetry books are looking for writings that have a chance to jog their minds and titillate their emotions. The sonnet tries to do this in only sixty seconds, at least this, in a quick read.

Ronald C. Downie

Sonnet : Only Knowledge

Sonnet : Only Knowledge

When looking into the mirror of hope,
I find far too many so deep in despair
Who willingly slough off a need to cope,
Leaving them vulnerable, requiring care :

Will it be some epiphany that grabs the scene ?
Without something like that, what's then ?
Do spots disappear, stripes fade, does fat lien ?
From nagging disappointments, hope comes when ?

Realizing a personal attitude becomes the key
To unlocking the potential energy pent up now
Awaiting release. Learning wisdom's wise old plea,
"Only knowledge sets Man free", showing him how.

History records, rewrites episodes sad or proud ;
While shunning facts, destiny floats on as a cloud.

Ronald C. Downie

A Message

A message given to a grandson upon his birthday with a wish that he understands the linage he has become a mainstay of. The World waits for his entry.

Follow The Thread

From the stock, of the stock, from so far back ;
Hunter Gatherers, they all were back then.
Before husbandry, before dirt farmers,
Before herders, before creative freemen,

Titanic their struggle compared to ours.
Blood and death, survival, so commonplace
Was their theme, reaching long from then to now,
Discounting gender, color, any which race.

You, me, your friends their long threads are in place
Knotted, over and over, linking each
Back, unbroken, but stretched, so stretched
Through millenniums: forests, fields, and beach.

Today, you are the keeper of the thread
That links family to eternity.
It is safe in your trust, integrity must
Carry the day, life's grand fraternity.

Proud but humbly, in you, we have faith
No matter what road signs impede and block.
Safely entrusted, banners bright, wind torn,
Unfurled, marks your journey, voicing the talk.

You are not alone, but of a special
Generation, one poised to move the Earth
Away from crippling decay. We honor
Your understanding for reasons of birth.

Ronald C. Downie

Occupy

Occupy

Has the Occupy movement just dried up, ready to blow away into lost memory, or is its strength reconstituting underground, remaking itself into a new formidable power, ready again to challenge the wide World ?

Sonnet : Into The Lamp Of History

When, onto the streets the massed disavowed march
From their "Occupy" camps into the lamp of history,
Their's is of every walk of life who carry the torch.
They make daily toil tribute to their work's mastery:

Then, they join in an echoing sound the massive choir
Assembled worldwide putting voice to the footsteps.
Unscripted, leaderless, message driven, forgiving prior
Allegiances to Madison Avenue's lusty driven preps :

And then, cracks within the cloistered Wall Street
Conclaves who hire blue coats for their protection.
Big money needs big results, billions verses speech ;
Words tug at heart and mind gaining true affection.

"The die is cast", an overwhelming thought adopted
By multitudes, succinct simplicity, never's co-opted.

Ronald C. Downie

Back To School

Back To School

Back to school rings sadly for many young,
Even the students in the Great Northeast.
While others, realizing gaining knowledge
Is a nobel endeavor, want return.
I was one of those caught in the middle.

For me, the lure of the story held sway,
Coming in class, more then when out playing.
School spoke to my desire for structured time,
Far too often, time off, brought disarray.
I was one to be quickly dissuaded.

We lived halfway : not farmers, not in town.
Always had a garden so we ate well.
Picked berries, in season grabbed fruit,
Thankfully took hand outs from our neighbors.
I wasn't special, just normal for the time.

My close buddies and I did all we could
Within walking distance : play sports, work, lounge.
As the opportunity arose, we -
"A Band Of Brothers" - accepted our role.
I never felt rebuff, but disappointments.

Which we shrugged off and went on with life.
Our youth was just like a roller coaster,
Up and down, around a corner, then stop.
We tried most everything: some wins, some not.
I bet, not keeping score, our saving grace.

Ronald C. Downie

Do I Have Your Ear ?

Do I Have Your Ear ?

I don't get away from my house too much, maybe once a week, but especially when I have a Doctor's appointment. Then, my wife, Connie, drives me around Pottstown so I get to see some of the changes being undertaken by town citizens and the borough itself. So, I get a birds eye view of town about every two months, this way, small continuous changes become readily evident and more memorable.

But, also evident and more memorable, are things which which should have changed but haven't. One that's so obvious and, which if not done, will create financial harm to many Pottstown residents and still this has not been addressed.

The Manatawny Creek has been prone to flood over its recorded history. It has a finite space for the stream, under normal weather conditions, to flow under the King Street Bridge on its path to merge with the river further south. Calculations for the bridge construction included the amount of anticipated water flow that could move under the bridge without building waters up stream, therefore, flooding Manatawny Street and adjacent properties.

If it has happened before, you can be sure it will happen again!

Silt has washed down stream and deposited below and above the bridge reducing the flow of water that could move under the bridge in any abnormal rain event. Adding insult to injury is the fact, that not only has silt built up but in that silt, trees and vegetation have germinated. These growing plants anchor them selves together and form a permanent barrier, they are islands in the making.

The Borough of Pottstown must remove these islands from the Manatawny Creek as soon as possible. This is so obvious its apparent need may be overlooked, something like, "not seeing the trees for the woods".
I'm sure there'll be appeals to the county and the state for them to address the problem of potential flooding.

Fleeting away is the time needed for correction, although, our weather has no set time table. A flooding deluge could come next week, next month, or next year, but come it will. Have you watched films on television depicting the terrible results from flooding around the World which someday will happen here ?

I hope we do more than give this potential problem a shrug and a nod. Benign neglect is the worse answer Pottstown could give its citizens.

Ronald C. Downie