edithbertrand.com
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Poems from the heart
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Life
Contents
Shadows - I've lived with death since I was born
Hate - Hate dominates the earth
The search - We leave the womb, we see first light
The affliction - Imagine life without a sound
Tears - There are tears when we laugh
Christmas - It's Christmas once again
Shadows
I've lived with death since I was born,
he's always at my side,
is he the devil’s advocate,
does he know wrong from right?
When sickness dwells within my breast
I hear his tempting song,
come onto me, you lonely soul,
you cannot do no wrong.
Come, grab my hand, it’s time to go,
we'll journey through the sky,
open your eyes and move your lips
and whisper your goodbye.
But then a golden cloud appears
and bathed in golden light,
a spirit dressed in flowing robe
stands smiling at my side.
Wake up, I'm here on God’s command,
there's still too much to learn,
your earthly task not yet fulfilled,
too early to return.
Physicians and my friends alike
are startled at my health,
they do not know that faith in God
is my spiritual wealth.
September 1992
Hate
Hate dominates the earth,
it can destroy mankind,
and like a cancerous disease
it slowly rots our mind.
Hate's been around as long as man
has walked upon the earth
and all that time he's been asleep,
blind to spiritual birth.
When Jesus came and gave his life
so we might understand,
we wrote his love with bloody swords,
spread fear across the land.
Man murdered millions in God’s name
and turned his love to hate,
religion became corruption,
but still it's not too late.
Together we can turn the tide
against the hate and fear,
destroy the devil in ourselves
and know that God is here.
The earth will be a paradise,
no fear for man or beast,
we'll understand the universe,
a true spiritual feast.
January 1993
The search
We leave the womb, we see first light,
give birth to our breath,
and once again the search is on
until embraced by death.
The search for good, the search for bad,
for love and for compassion,
the search for man, of how to deal
with hate and with aggression.
And then we see the spirit’s task
like some gigantic mountain,
it has to climb with shackled feet
while drinking from life's fountain.
To overcome the obstacles
presented every day,
to try avoid their tentacles
that are coming our way.
The positive, the negative,
what will be our choice?
Temptation is persuasive
with its suggestive voice.
And so the search goes on and on,
a never ending challenge
to try and reach the ultimate,
to find a perfect balance.
To understand the lesson
created by our birth,
a link in the eternal chain
towards our spiritual worth.
February 1996
The affliction
Imagine life without a sound,
devoid of conversation,
the thought of being deaf and dumb
is filled with trepidation.
Did we invite the devil's wrath
when born with this curse,
or could it be a Godly task
to realise our worth?
There is an answer to all this
of quite a different kind,
the curse could be a blessing
observed through spirit’s mind
To abstain of human qualities,
no lies, no hate, no greed,
no one to whisper in your ear
to sow their evil seed.
Imagine life without a sound,
devoid of conversation,
indeed a blessing in disguise
towards spiritual jubilation.
October 1996
Tears
There are tears when we laugh
and tears when we cry,
tears when there’s pain
and tears when we die.
But the tears that we hide
in ourselves deep inside
are the tears from the past,
forever they last.
For the things we’ve done wrong
to loved ones and others,
lack of concern
being fathers and mothers.
When life catches up
and the years have flown by
we sit down and weep
because then we know why.
Weep not my friend
because such is our life,
a mixture of laughter
of tears and of strife.
The one that you cry for
will also grow old
and becomes part of the story
that just has been told.
August 2011
Christmas
It's Christmas once again
but there's no peace on earth,
man lives in total ignorance,
still does not know his worth.
He kills and maims and plunders on
to satisfy his greed,
he does not care who dies or starves,
oblivious to their need.
But once a year he turns around
and puts on a festive face,
adorns his house with ornaments
and gathers in God’s place.
He sings and prays and worships "Him",
creator of all men,
and when the holy days are done
the killing starts again.
When does man learn some tolerance?
Observe the fruit it yields,
lay down the sword, bring out the plough
to work the "killing fields".
A simple way to end all wars,
it brings peace to every man,
let's pray he learns some sanity
and never fights again.
December 2012