POEMS from the HEART


by Julie Longhill

 There are many things on this Earth that make my HEART sing. A
beautiful sunset, children giggling, unexpected miracles, friendship,
 unconditional love, the beauty of discovery, tulips ablaze in color, ocean 
waves, freedom, free time, creativity, thunderstorms, solitude, great music,
honesty, watching animals in nature, the seasons, the sunshine, love.......
           There are also many things on this Earth that make my HEART ache.
Child abuse, animal abuse, cruelty, captivity, disrespect, pollution, greed,
hate, control, dishonesty, apathy, prejudice, injustice, materialism,
poverty, lack of awareness, the idea of ownership, violence, too many roads....
           
          Writing is how I deal with all of these feelings. It helps me
through difficult and glorious times..both. When the feelings are too 
overwhelming....I take out my pen and write. Here are a few of these poems
                        FROM THE HEART!!!!!!!!



                        
                      In precious moments,
                      our hearts stand still
                      For our hearts have been waiting
                            so long

                       When the time comes
                       for Love's precious song
                       Our hearts stand still

                       And we listen
                       And we feel
                       And we glisten
                       And we heal

                       All of our hearts' longings
                       All of our hearts' joys
                       All of our hearts' belongings
                    We listen, and glisten, with Amor 





                           Horses don't like bridles
                          Collars don't make the dog
                          How would you like it...
                           to be jerked around?

                              Maybe you do
                            Maybe that's all you know
                              And the horse too

                              For BOTH of you
                           have had your SPIRITS
                                broken...





                          HOW DID WE GET SO OFF TRACK?
               
                Hating ourselves as we do...Calling our children BRATS
             when they cry, when they are just being children, when they
             are just being HUMAN, when they are just BEING.....
                               WHO THEY ARE

                           HOW DID WE GET SO OFF TRACK?

                Hating our children as we do...Shaking them to stop FEELING
              NO,DON'T CRY, DON'T WHINE, DON'T BE LIKE THAT, YOU KNOW
              BETTER! You know better? A child knows better than to feel?
              The message comes across LOUD AND CLEAR to every little soul.
                               DO NOT SHOW EMOTION
                             DO NOT EXPRESS YOURSELF
                              DO NOT BE WHO YOU ARE
                Especially if it's loud and we are in public. Hush, Be Quiet
              in the grocery store, in the library, in the church, in the
               schools, and even in our own homes....Be Quiet, don't be so
               LOUD, so EMOTIONAL, so NEEDY, SO..SO....SO..........
                                HUMAN!!!!!

                 And when we hate our children, we hate ourselves
               We become numb, repressed followers; never feeling,
               never expressing, never loving our humaness or each other...
                         We become people who HATE
                       Because we HATE our own human nature

                       HOW DID WE GET SO OFF TRACK? 





 
                         Spirit of the Wind
                           you call...
                         Open yourself and merge
                         Swirling around me
                         caressing my skin
                         You are me, I am you,
                           Let's begin...

                          Our Wind Dance.

                          You lead to the left
                           but a faint stir
                        Steadily building and then..
                            I face you, we turn,
                             over and over
                                again.

                             You carry me
                          in a turbulent frenzy
                          Swirling and swirling...akin
                          to the waltz, the eon of dances,
                             pale when compared
                               to my WIND. 





                        Life can be so beautiful
                        it stuns you with it's awe
                      the emerald green of a mallard's head
                        the way the snow can fall

                        Life can be so magical
                       it takes you by surprise
                   when a stranger grabs your soul
                      and sees deep within your eyes

                        Life can be so funny
                      it throws you on the floor
                       the way a parrot imitates
                       you almost beg for more

                       Life can be so tragic
                      it covers you in gloom
                    the mistreatment of our children
                      it's like a living tomb

                       Life can be so hopeful
                       it leads you on and on
                       a path appears from nowhere
                       your destiny is won 




     THIS NEXT POEM IS ABOUT ZOOS...AND KEEPING ANIMALS CAPTIVE FOR OUR
ENTERTAINMENT. IT IS TIME TO REALIZE THAT WE DO NOT HAVE THE "RIGHT" TO 
TREAT ANIMALS AS OBJECTS. THEY ARE OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS. WE DO NOT 
OWN THEM, WE SHOULD NOT ABUSE THEM, WE NEED TO HONOR THEM AND SET THEM FREE!

                          LET THEM GO PLEASE
                        They are not yours to keep
                         they need a life too
                          oh, it makes me weep

                          LET THEM GO PLEASE
                         They have emotions too
                           they deserve freedom
                           like me and like you

                          LET THEM GO PLEASE
                        This is not educational
                         a bored, confined creature
                          for you, it's recreational?

                          LET THEM GO PLEASE
                         Release them from their cages
                         release them from their misery
                         and the keepers from their wages

                          LET THEM GO PLEASE
                        I don't want to hear excuses
                        like their habitat is dwindling
                        like we're saving them....it's useless

                          LET THEM GO PLEASE
                       They're in prison and you know it
                        you've justified your system
                    and convinced us all..except this poet

                          LET THEM GO PLEASE
                       I beg of you today
                         LET THEM GO PLEASE
                       Let them live in their own way  






     I WROTE THIS POEM/SONG ABOUT THE CONTROVERSY SURROUNDING CHIEF WAHOO
(THE CARICATURE/LOGO OF THE CLEVELAND INDIAN'S BASEBALL TEAM). I ALSO WAS
MOVED TO PROTEST WITH OTHERS AGAINST THIS LOGO...AND THEY ASKED ME TO SING
THIS SONG, WHICH I DID. 

                        
                          When will we hear?
                          When will we feel?
                          When will we heal the pain?

                          You say "it doesn't matter"
                          You say "you don't care"
                          You ask "why are they so hurt?"

                          And I say "that it matters"
                          And I say "we need to care"
                          And I say "WE ARE ALL BROTHERS;
                           THEIR FIGHT, WE SHARE"

                          We fight Chief Wahoo
                          And all it represents
                          We fight the ugly face
                          Always in our midst

                          We fight corporate greed
                          That leads us all like sheep
                          We fight the apathy
                          That leaves our people weak

                          We fight for equality
                          And a change of heart
                          We fight for understanding
                          For people to do their part

                          We fight against racism
                          In every subtle form
                          We fight against the need
                          To injure, maim, and harm

                          We fight for human rights
                          To live in dignity
                          We fight for respect
                          We fight for liberty

                          When will we hear?
                          When will we feel?
                          When will we Heal the Pain? 

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