This Day

Retirement can bring a dulling

Of one’s days

There is no urgency

To get things done

It is an illusion

That there is time

To spare

No need to rush

But cherish each day

And fill it

With purposeful

Living

©2017 Thomas Bergum

Little Red

I have been watching

A Red Squirrel

Chase two Grey Squirrels

How can such a small creature

Terrorize animals twice its size

I know people like that

©2017 Thomas Bergum 

Taking Care Of Business

I completed a home project today

It was on my to do list for five years

Two hours of casual work

It was not technical

Nor was it costly

I just didn’t want to do it

My neighbor will celebrate

I have a toilet again

©2017 Thomas Bergum 

The Work Of Life

If I could wave a wizardly wand

And angst and pain from past would flee

Your mind could rest think leisurely

If hurts and doubts layered in your heart

Could be magically sifted out

And you would have a heart of joy

Would this be best for you

Dare I declare that who you are

A mix of gem and scree

Is who you’re meant to be

And as you mine your personhood

The pick and shovel work be done

With guidance from The One Who Loves

Your health and grown

Not just excavation

Of foreign substance rid

But the work itself

Defines your being

©2017 Thomas Bergum

Be Present

Be present with your cat

One can get preoccupied

With electronic devices

Social media can rule our lives

Communicating with people who are not present

Stealing the moments with one’s cat

Neglecting

Ignoring

Inattentive

It is a trend now days

And the consequences are devastating

Cat distemper is up by 150%

©2017 Thomas Bergum  

Heading For Trouble

I’ve been thinking

That is when my life

Took a turn for the worse

There is a saying

If you don’t think too good

Don’t think too much

Well needless to say

I didn’t take that saying to heart

It looks like I will need

To just ride out my bad decision

I figure in about a year

Things will be a little better

©2017 Thomas Bergum

Donations Requested

The museum of failed relationships

Is found in Croatia

They are looking for donations

What are you going to donate

I am sending my music book

To honor my saxophone teacher

Who crushed my hopes

At the tender age of 65

©2017 Thomas Bergum

Two Trees

A tree diverges at its base

Two trees sharing the same roots

What will their stories be

One success

One failure

Or shall they both reach the heights

©2017 Thomas Bergum

Waiting

I am waiting

For someone

To tell me

I’m valuable

It might be

A long wait

Then when it happens

I’ll will question their sincerity  

©2017 Thomas Bergum

Day Break

The sun on my face

Is there anything better

Especially at day break

Is there any other warmth that can compare

As its rays crest the horizon

Greeting all of nature

Time to sleep nocturnal world

Time to rise all creatures of this day

©2017 Thomas Bergum 

Entropy

We live with a thought

That love will always be

But in this world we’ve found

That’s contradictory

For if a place of beauty

Is left to simply be

A principle of nature

Will steal its energy

We say we fall in love

That sounds like gravity

But love will fall away

Due to entropy

If love is what you vow

To the beauty of your eye

You need to do much more

Than simply give a try

Work your heart each day

Rid self centered clods and weeds

Then tender kindness seeds release

To sprout in all your deeds

And as you toil for love

Pray they will do the same

Then love will always bloom

Again and again 

©2017 Thomas Bergum

Where Do The Word Go

Where do the words go

If I don’t put the pen to the paper

Will I find them again

Or shall they go to another

I am fearful when I have no paper

And words drop to my lap

I want to capture them

Not for fame

And certainly not for fortune

But because I can create

I must create

To make something

From a phrase

Weave it into a poem

And lay it down

As part of my life

©2017 Thomas Bergum

Entropy

We live with a thought

That love will always be

But in this world we’ve found

That’s contradictory

For if a place of beauty

Is left to simply be

A principle of nature

Will steal its energy

We say we fall in love

That sounds like gravity

But love will fall away

Due to entropy

If love is what you vow

To the beauty of your eye

You need to do much more

Than simply give a try

Work your heart each day

Rid self centered clods and weeds

Then tender kindness seeds release

To sprout in all your deeds

And as you toil for love

Pray they will do the same

Then love will always bloom

Again and again  

©2017 Thomas Bergum

I Miss You

I Miss You

I wasn’t married to my job

But I was engaged

I knew the time would come

When we would have to part

I didn’t realize how difficult it would be

I miss things I never thought I would

Your demands

Deadlines

Unreasonable expectations

Even your calls on the weekend

I loved you

But when I left

You found someone else

To take my place

© 2017 Thomas Bergum

Irritable Baloney Syndrome

Have you ever been around someone

Who confounds you

With their stories

Interpretations of events

And grand thoughts

About themselves

Just wanted to let you know

It is incurable

Morning Light

Before morning light

The earth seems to slumber

Veiled from my sight

No shadows or figures

Seen from my window

Just darkness

No light

And now this tomorrow

The earth’s never seen

Will break with the morning

As shapes and shadows

Are slowly revealed

While darkness departs

In this morning light

Waves

New waves break

On the shore

Each one changes the beach

 I have never been one

To sunbath

Or lounge in a chair

I’m more of a beachcomber

On the move

Walking

Listening

Looking for items of interest

Each wave brings in something

The little things bring variety

The big things demand attention

Some days the waves

Stirrup sediment

The past mixes with the present

It can be unsettling

But I know life

Is about solving

And resolving

Retirement doesn’t mean

The waters are always calm 

Let Go

I just got fired

From my volunteer job

It wasn’t a big surprise

I’ve been getting feedback

That I am over paid

I didn’t take it too hard

It’s not like I needed the job