HARMONY 
SONGBIRD 
IRREFUTABLE TIME 
HUMAN INTERVENTION 
UNINTENTIONAL SUISIDE 
THE QUESTION 
VOLITION 
SATISFACTION 
NORTHERN PREMONITION 
PHILOSOPHY
UNINTENTIONAL SUICIDE 
Ceiling of the Amazon,
Where birds and monkeys roam;
Waterways and jungle floors
To many species is home.
Cutting down its trees;
Scaring the face of land.
Human life is made easier
While we give ourselves a hand!
Turning of a switch;
Hearing an evil boom.
Actually it is nature
Needing the elbow room.
Burning of our rain forests
Pushing all wild life aside;
The human race commits
Unintentional suicide.
Copyright 2OO3, Anthony W. Gussler, III
Harmony
Moored to a small village wharf
In a quiet harbor to rest
On freshly painted deck
Mast and furled sail stand abreast.
Spars, sleek and coeval,
Unfurled sail prepared to raise;
Cleats, sheaves and chocks
Filtered sun did seemingly braze.
The mast is tall, strongly built
Supporting rags, wind stressed.
The craft depends upon this alliance
For sailing on oceans breast.
They advance this vessel together
Their destiny to them unknown.
This movement is due to the sail
But, not by sail alone.
Tacking to port in an offshore wind
Ending a long day at sea.
Not just mast, not just canvas,
It takes both to achieve efficacy.
The relationship will ever last
'Twixt sail and its mast.
SONGBIRD
Making the long trip home,
Home from the smoke filled bar;
I saw the first rays of the morning sun,
And dimming of the brightest star.
My tired eyes were open
But, my sight was blurred.
I turned on the radio
Only to hear every other word.
I sat in deep cogitation;
It seemed as though the words faded.
Feeling myself drifting
As my car accelerated.
Coming to my senses
Beneath a tree in a roadside field,
I set my sight on a demolished wreck
And an oak that did not yield.
Now my thoughts were guided
By a very peaceful sound.
I could not spot it's source
But knew it was there, it was all around.
A sonance sometimes listened to
But, seldom ever heard.
It is the song,
Song of the frail songbird.
HUMAN INTERVENTION?
Petals
Wilt, drop to earth;
Seeds are left dormant.
Dry limbs;
Leaflets are cast
Adrift hot stillness.
Clouds form
Spawning relief,
Giving salvation.
Rainfall
Subsides to mist,
Hatching sights and sounds
Nature
Regenerates
Temporarily.
Downpour
Seems infinite;
Drowning all rebirth.
Sequence
May be broken,
But extremes prevail.
The Question
As I watched the small animal
Go in for the kill,
She crossed the earth
With such grace, style, and skill.
Her tiny ebony paws set
Most evenly paced,
Moved across the ground
Stopping in a dark and hidden place.
She darted from the shadows
In a long, fatal blur,
Leaving this cover unnoticed
Due to her black-as-coal fur.
The feline pounced upon her prey,
Delivering a lethal blow.
The small bird fell lifeless
Without even a death throe.
Some people perceive this
As being cruel, unnatural, or mean.
The beauty in this passes
Unnoted and unseen.
Nothing is for certain
In this game we call life.
It is full of happiness,
And abundant in strife.
When it is all over
Said and done,
The question remains unanswered.
Is it really over with,
Or has it just begun?
"Things that are pretty are also beautiful. However, things that are beautiful are not always pretty."
IRREFFUTABLE TIME
It is time,
To start caring for what we have;
And time to
Stop worrying about what we have not.
SATISFACTION
The more I know;
The more I do not know.
The more I see;
The more I have not seen.
The more I feel;
The more I have not felt.
The more I hear;
The more I have not heard.
The more I smell;
The more I have not smelt.
The more I taste;
The more I have not tasted.
The more I touch;
The more I have not touched.
The more I get;
The more I do not want.
"I dunno... Don't ya juz kinda sence
PHILOSOPHY
Is this for real?
Must be a big joke.
'Twill live and 'twill die
The life of an egg yolk!
They say an egg is expendable.
We do it for self gain?
Cracking them and eating them,
We think they feel no pain.
Is this what society teaches us?
Where does our faith in it stop?
Think of these questions next time you hold an egg,
And never let it drop.
The answer to a question
May not be the remedy;
A fancy name for a suggestion
Is simply philosophy.
NORTHERN PREMONITION Golden leaves are set assail
Upon a chilling autumn's gale,
Resting on lands we do not know;
Soon cloaked by winter's snow.
Days grow short, nights grow long.
The air too brisk for the songbird's song.
Fallen acorns squirrels amass,
While a black bear explores a reposeful crevasse.
'Tis season for white tails mate;
For bucks, during this time, feeding can abate.
Barren limbs, greens of spring adjourn
Leaving reds and browns the forest to adorn.
O'er stunted growth a cold breeze shall wail;
Golden leaves are set assail.
VOLITION
Beginning a journey to the gym
Swinging open the car door;
I wanted to have a large physique
With little work
But, knew this would take much more.
Lost in thought, for a moment or two,
My body overcome by desire.
Knowing my face would distort
And my body would need to perspire.
Perhaps if I exerted enough effort,
Maybe if I possessed enough will;
Not to come in an injection
Or to to be in a pill.
You see, this is mostly in the mind
When you place your back to the board
Pressing the weight high into the air,
Finding strengths your muscles may hoard.
And if the massive poundage
Does slam to the ground,
I shall not quit!
Nor will I let it get me down.
Instead I will smile
Knowing I gave my best;
Taking a deep breath
Giving my mind a rest.
The mind, in an case,
Does the majority of all work.
I believe we can master this;
Never entering that psychological cirque.
This build won't come easy;
It has been said good things never will
So, get a good, strong grip
For it is a long, long road uphill.
Remember, it is not only ambition
But, it is mostly volition!
