The Hallmark of Creation

 

My parents are no longer with us on this Earth

But the echoes of their voices are locked in my heart.

At night I hide from the world, searching for peace.

The raging storms of reality that invade my mind

Tend to cancel my dreams and awaken my anxiety.

Is peace just a dream or will it be possible after all.  

We are all students here, every single one of us.

Our understanding will never be totally complete.

Fear alone ensures that we remain quite ignorant

And fast asleep in the arms of ancestral tradition.

I don't want to live in some hum-drum past where

There is nothing new under the sun and sky.

Let's keep to the tried and true but at the same time

Open our eyes to the amazing and unexpected

Surprises that God may have in store for us,

I can't believe that the Creator has stopped creating.

The hallmark of creation is continuous improvement.

Let our collective effort be for the greater glory of God.

"Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam," (For God's Greater Glory).

If this makes us progressive, then so let it be.

(Bob Mrotek 2023)

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Tears of Regret

The miracle of my birth is to me sufficient proof of a Creator.
And so I am duty bound and determined to lead a moral life 
For the greater glory of God, that there be no regrets.
But, alas, I have not escaped regrets, so what can I do? 
Whenever I think that I have the answer to this problem,
It changes form like the patterns in a kaleidoscope,
Here is a man who is earnestly seeking enlightenment,
While drowning in his own folly and unreasonable expectations.
I spend days and nights haunted by my inadequacies and errors
Bringing to mind the memories of those whom I may have offended,
Beseeching them to answer me and forgive my trespasses,
For many a man is slain by the destiny of his own making.
There are three kinds of tears associated with emotion.
They are tears of joy, tears of sadness, and tears of regret.
The first two are like raindrops falling from the eyes.
They are deeply heartfelt but slowly dissipate with time.
The third are tears of blood that drip, drip, drip from the heart.
They are the bloody tears of regret that never go away.
Even Saint Peter was not immune. His tears of  regret began
When the rooster crowed after he denied Our Lord three times.
The tears of regret are the guardrails of moral reality, 
They are reminders that the wages of sin are death, but
The gift of God is forgiveness by way of repentance
And the peace of mind and heart that go with it thereafter.
Go in peace brothers and sisters and may God be with you.
(Bob Mrotek 2023)

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Between the Blinks

You blink and you find yourself in the November of your life.

Between the blinks, your children grew up, your parents died,

And many old friends are no longer living or have moved on.

You blink between the worry, and the work, and the money spent,

And the dreams that you put away for "sometime when you can."

When we blink too fast, we miss a laugh, a hug, and one last "I love you."

What if we stop blinking so much and take mental snapshots of our life?

Look after the children when they do their homework. Teach them.

Look at your spouses in a quiet moment and seek to understand them.

Look at your mothers and fathers if they are still around and cherish them.

Spend time with relatives and friends and seek out the good in them.

Be as joyful as you can during this time and don't waste the opportunity.

Yes, time will pass, by and by, but looking back, "in the blink of an eye,"

Not even death can take away the moments of our happiness.

They will keep us company on the journey to heaven and eternal life.  

(Bob Mrotek 2023)

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On the Eve of World Chaos

Experience is the mother of all sciences and revelation is a form of reason.
When bad fortune shuts the door to what we are seeking,
Providence opens a new door through reason to a better experience.
If we fail to open the door to progress and new horizons,
It is not the fault of Providence that we stagnate, but ours alone.
There is no proverb that doesn't carry some truth with it for
Proverbs are drawn from experience, the "Mother of Invention," as it were.
After all, "science fiction" is the seed of all science, is it not?
Vengeance is not the way to right a wrong because it is based on desire.
The first rule of civilization is Peace and only non-violence and self sacrifice will do.
If it need be that vengeance is required, it belongs to our merciful but just Creator.
We must always seek peaceful coexistence, unless Heaven ordains otherwise.
I let out a long sigh of supplication and send it to Heaven as a prayer:
Oh, Lord, when will we ever learn, if it be Thy will that we ever do?
Our Father who art in Heaven, when will Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done? 

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Stay in the "now."

Time is a human concept. It is all relative

To where we are on the map of the Universe.

Speed = distance divided by human time,

Distance = speed × human time, and  

Human time = distance divided by speed.

Our days are measured by the rotation of the Earth

And the circumnavigation of Earth around the Sun.

The Earth doesn't know how old it is and neither

Does the Sun or the Moon, and they don't care.

They just obey the will of their Creator.

We leave human time only when we choose to.

That's why time "flies" when we are having fun.

Some of us care a lot about human time. Why?

Because we hate to be late for our own funeral?

A poor life it is, if we are not aware of timelessness.

We still have plenty of time to stop. think, and

Search out God and the nature of time and space.

What is "now"? It is like one tic-toc on the human clock.

Do caterpillars know that they will be butterflies,

Or do they just build themselves a coffin, go to sleep,

And wake up later, delightfully surprised?

Join the congregation of what's happening now!

Don't worry. Be happy. Stay in the "now".

All of the time. It's about time!

(Bob Mrotek 2023)

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Every Day of Your Life

Every day of your life, look 

For better ways to get better.

Think positive, work hard,

Have fun, and make it happen.

Don't squander your energy

On people who don't like you, or 

On trying to impress others, or

On things you can't control, or

On building castles in the air, or

On things you can't learn from.

To be taken seriously, be consistent.

Don't waste other people's time.

Before you speak - Listen 

Before you pray - Meditate

Before you spend - Earn 

Before you act - Think

Before you sign - Read

Before you take - Give

Before you quit - Try   

Later, it is already too late!

Hope for the best,

But prepare for the worst,  

And the most important thing,

Keep peace in your heart.

(Bob Mrotek 2023)

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Look within yourself to find the truth

When you finally get to the top of your climb you really can't enjoy it.

Because from the top, everything that you see is at your feet.

And you realize that every material thing that goes up must come down.

When you get to the top of the heap there is no more top to go to.

Winners must always keep in mind that losing is just around the corner.

Every spark of life on earth contains our Lord's divine light.

Look within yourself to find it. He isn't as far from you as you are from Him.

If you have love for yourself then embrace everyone else as family.

This is the basic form of worship because we are all brothers and sisters.

Many seemingly upright men and women are afflicted with sexual desires.

The quest for the nature of life, the "sensus communis," the seat of the soul,

Is centered in the human brain, a great system of connected things,

With the essence of being, at its core, as it is above, so it is below.

The spiritual center of a human being is focused on the naval.

The material center of a human being is focused on the genitals.

The real truth is not necessarily what people believe, or not.

They believe what they want to believe that does not conflict tradition.

Politicians and corporations strive to engineer the beliefs of the masses.

They create illusions so great that they are accepted as the truth.

When synthetic diamonds become indistinguishable from "true" diamonds,

They become accepted as true and then the real truth loses all meaning.  

(Bob Mrotek 2023)

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No turning back!

If and until we are blessed with tomorrow,
We only have today, and that's all there is.
Most people are what they are and what they were.
They live in a personal ego bubble that they carry around, 
Like a hermit crab carries a sea shell on its back,
And only comes out of its shell to change it for a bigger one
As their lives become more threatened and complicated.
People say that life isn't fair, and that we all can't be lucky,
That we must do what we can and not what we want.
Well, if you don't like to eat bullshit, don't blame the bull,
Blame the guy who feeds it to you, or better yet, turn away.  
By changing today you can change tomorrow but without a decision
Today's problems are guaranteed to be tomorrow's also.
But by making firm committments to change today,
You can free yourself from yesterday's habits forever.
Think things over really hard, make a plan, and then just do it. 
No turning back, no turning back!

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A Ripple on the Sea of Eternity

 

Change is constant. We can’t step into the same river twice.

When the fickle winds of change begin to blow,

Some people build walls, and others build windmills.

Looking in your rear view mirror takes your eyes off the road ahead,

And If you walk looking backward you might end up dead.

You can look to the past but it is the future you are facing.

The present is just a ripple on the sea of eternity. 

The past is like another country where they do things differently. 

It is a frozen river that never flows, but  gets longer and longer. 

Time is a human invention. It is nothing but distance divided by speed. 

From the perspective of eternity our whole life is happening now,

Life is one long day interspersed with periods of light and shadow.

Every person leaves a path through space like a unique fingerprint. 

“Now” is all we really have. Yesterday is history, and tomorrow is a mystery.

Sadness is a sense of loss of what once was, or what might have been.

Nostalgia is a memory of good times with all the sadness omitted.

It is a parade of many ghosts and events from the past, 

Trying to find their place again in your mind's eye.

It is up to every individual to find their own salvation. 

Test all things. If something is good, then try to make it better. 

The important thing is the degree of our intent to do the right thing.

As for attempting to leave this world in better shape,  

The proof of one’s true humanity (and divinity) is to die trying.

Thank God for one more day of trying, again, again, and yet again,

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be.

Every spark of life on earth contains our Lord's divine light. 

Look within yourself to find it. He isn't as far from you as you are from Him.

If you have love for yourself then embrace everyone else as family.

This is the basic form of love because we are all brothers and sisters.

Come Holy Spirit, Creator Blest, and in our hearts take up thy rest,

Come with your grace and heavenly aid, to fill the hearts which you have made,

To fill the hearts which you have made…Amen!  

(Bob Mrotek 2023)

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Swimming in the Lake of Good Dreams

When you reach your retirement dream,

What do you dream of next?

Most of my companions of youth

Are now just ghosts who visit my dreams.

We go swimming in the lake of good times.

Do not worry about anything.

What will be will be.

Mortal life is a temporary dream.

Let your heart be light with joy.

Heal the wounds of the young and innocent.

Make their dreams your dreams too,

For we can still rejoice in the young,

But only if we are young at heart.

It's time to get your act together.

Don't let the bad times get you down..

As I lay down each night to rest,

I thank the Lord that I am blessed,

And ask for help to do my best

To walk in the light of Providence,

And  to prepare myself for tomorrow,

Come what may…!

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When is enough, enough?

Year upon year, the more things change, the more they stay the same..

As I grow older, the same things happen but in a very strange way.

They happen like before, but somehow, everything is different.

I think it must be a struggle between two capricious illusions,

A combination of blissful nostalgic memories of a happy past,

And the dark déjà vu brought on by memories of "duck and cover."

It is better to live in the "now," between the two eternities,

Than to dwell on the past or to build dream castles in the air.

I thank God that I have something that millions of people may never have.

I have been blessed with just enough, not too much, and not too little,

Have I had adversity? Yes, but it has helped me, as "steel sharpens steel."

There is no real justice in this material world, only the pursuit of justice.

Real justice will be meted out by and by in the world to come,

When our words and deeds are weighed against the feather of truth.

Thousands of souls are dying every day, from poverty, hunger, and gloom.

Oh Children of God what will we say, upon that awful judgement day.

When they accuse us of their doom and cry, "There was never enough!"

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Facing the setting sun...

I am getting closer to my ultimate sunset.
Last night I dreamt about St. Elsewhere, 
A carefree place in the land of Sockitoomee,
Where all the lost socks are waiting to be found, 
And where old soldiers go when they fade away.
It's a place where childhood innocence is regained, 
And all good dogs and cats await to be reclaimed.
I bless you, life! I loved and am loved!
The sun and wind caress my upturned face.
The birds, the bees, the flowers and trees,
The grass, the squirrels, and the weeds,
And even the rain and snow are friends.
Life, you owe me nothing...we are at peace!   
I sing out loud and strong of faith and freedom,
Of brotherly love and happy camaraderie.
The poor unfortunate soul who never sings,
But dies with all their music still held within,
Is the human tragedy of a life unsung.

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The Spirit of the Crossroads

The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of the crossroads.  

The Holy Spirit is the giver of life everywhere; 

Where the mountains meet the forests, 

Where the forrests meet the plains, 

Where the plains meet the rivers, 

Where the rivers meet the seas, 

Where the horizon meets the sky, 

Where language and culture meet, 

Where ethnicity meets diversity,

Where the city meets the countryside, 

Where the past meets the present, 

Where the present meets the future, 

And where male and female come together 

To form generation after generation.

Come, Holy Spirit, Spark of Life,

O Causa Vitae et Spiritus Amoris,

Reside in our hearts and grant us peace.   

(Bob Mrotek 2023)

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Memento Mori

 Cindy Williams, the actress, is dead at 75. She was born at the same time I was. This is my "Memento Mori."

The Bible tells us that “We live for 70 years, or 80 years if we're healthy, yet even in the prime years there are troubles and sorrow. They pass by quickly and we fly away.” (Psalm 90:10) 

Princess Alice, who was the mother of Prince Phillip, the husband of Queen Elizabeth, once said, “When you reach seventy you are no longer a participant but only an observer. Your only responsibility is to wait patiently and stay out of the way."

In "Paradise Lost," an epic poem by the 17th-century English poet John Milton, the Archangel Michael spoke to Adam as he and Eve were ushered out of Paradise and gave them some advice. He said, “If you watch what you eat and drink and don’t overdo it you can live a long life. Then, when you get old you will die a more peaceful death. However, your eyesight and your hearing will get weak and you won’t have much fun anymore. You will lose your youthful enthusiasm for life and become melancholy. Don’t hate your life or love it too much. Just live the best way that you can, come what may. Learn to be patient and happy. That is the best way to live. Don’t worry, God will still love you no matter what if you keep your faith in Him. His Holy Spirit is present in everything living thing and He is just a heartbeat away, listening for your prayers which He will answer bye and bye. Even a short repentant sigh or a good deed done in His name will go a long way, for He is always listening and watching." I would only add, "In the meantime, muddle through and carry on, stick it out, stay alive, and keep breathing."

Where were you...?

 We can't know what we don't know if we never even thought about it. 

God asks us, “Where were you when I laid the foundation of the Earth?”

We answer, “We were there, Lord, potential and implicit, at the Big Bang,

By the grace of God, an inevitable and unstoppable force majeure,

Like a hurricane wind in that overwhelmingly deep womb of creation. 

We, who answer you, your anointed and  ever evolving children,

Who strive toward enlightenment for your honor and glory, 

While opening our eyes to a reality whose wonders never cease.

Hear us, O Lord, and guide us on our journey to your Paradise.

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Forgive us Lord, please.

Perdónanos El Señor, por favor.
Hablamos casi cada día
Con el chisme y de la chusma,
O de la pobreza y de los proles,
Y del costo de los frijoles.
O “¿Va a llover, o no?”
Y “¡Que caliente el sol!”
También de mal gobierno.
Por y para, todo y nada,
Platicamos día tras día,
Y no pasa nada todavía.
Ayúdanos Papa Dios,
Evitar las tonterías.
Señor, Señor, Señor,
M​á​ndanos pena y dolor,
Pero discutir con los locos,
No nos manda Señor...¡Por favor!
¡Amen! 

Forgive us Lord, please.
We talk almost every day
With the gossip about the riff-raff,
Or of poverty and common folk,
And the cost of the beans.
Or, “Is it going to rain or not?”
And “How hot the sun is!”
Also about bad government.
By and by, everything and nothing,
We talk day after day
And still nothing happens.
Help us Heavenly Father,
To avoid foolishness.
Lord, Lord, Lord,
Send us sorrow and pain,
But to argue with the crazy ones,
Don't send us Lord... Please!
Amen! 

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