The Beggar

I passed by a beggar on the street
Beside him was a shopping cart
Filled with odds
And ends
He held a sign up
That read
Money needed for food
The printing was sloppy
And printed in pencil
Barely readable
I watched as people passed by
A mother quickly pulled her little boy
In fear of the man
I watched, too
As well dressed men
And women
Swiftly walked by
Eyes straight ahead
No one looked his way
Everyone in such a rush
Moving to and fro
The old beggar
With torn clothes
And a light jacket
Looked down into his container
I watched as he placed his hand
Down into the bottom
And pulled out a few coins
Barely enough
To buy a cup of coffee
The old beggar
Continued to hold his sign up
Turning the sign in the direction
Of the next pedestrian
The odd coin was thrown his way
One such coin bounced out
And rolled across the sidewalk
The beggar dropped his sign
And hurried over to fetch his coin
Before someone else got it
My heart went out to this poor man
I wondered why everyone just passed him by
Perhaps thinking that he would spend the money
Foolishly
Do we know the beggar’s circumstances
Do we know his story
For he has one
We all have one
We could be that one
Standing
Begging
For our next meal
We could be the one holding up the sign
Need money for food
And what happens
When we stand before our Lord
And He will say
I was hungry
Did you feed Me
I was thirsty
Did you give Me drink
I was cold
Did you give me warmth
Will we be able to say
Yes, Lord
Yes, Lord
We always will have the poor
Before us
It is not for us to judge
If he will use the money for food
Or not
It is not for us to decide
If his motives are right
It is up to us
To step out of our comfort zone
And give to the needy
Give to those that are so in need
Of food
Water
Warmth
And love
And forgive me, Father
For I am guilty
Of passing by the lone beggar
I am guilty before, You
My Lord.

Gail Adams

Written for my Aunt Hazel on her 88th Birthday

Written for my Aunt Hazel
Feb. 17, 2012

The days that God has given me
My eyes have seen much
And my feet have taken me to
Places I never dreamed of going
I have had the good
And the bad
Pass through my life
Bringing me much happiness
And some sadness
I have been blessed
With healthy children
And have lived
To see my children’s
Children
I have been blessed
Beyond what I expected
I have had a long
And successful marriage
Going through
Many hardships
And some triumphs
Not all my days
Were joyful
For there were days
That at times
I wished
That things could have been
Different for me
But I climbed that hurdle
And found
That the sun shone
Once again
Bringing me hope
And a knowing
That a new day
Had dawned
And I can again
See above the clouds
My life is nearing the end
Of my allotted days
And I can say
That all is well
My children
And my children’s
Children
Will say of me
That I was to them
All that I should be
And I can lie my head
Down and rest
Until we meet again.

Gail Adams

We All Have A Story

We all have a story
Of what has passed
For us
Stories of sadness
And sorrows
Of joys
And of exalted times
Times of reaching our goals
Times of failing
Times when parents failed us
And we failed them
Times of miracles
When we just missed
Being hurt
Or killed
And there were times
When troubles hit
Troubles enough to knock one down
And to some
It did
To others
They crawled back up again
To face that which took them down
There were times when our teachers
Failed to teach
And times when we failed to listen
Times when we chose for ourselves
A partner
One of our choosing
And against all wisdom
Of parent and friend
We felt what we had was love
True love
Only to find out they were right
And we were wrong
There were times when death
Stepped in
And took our love away
And there were times when
The birth of a child
Brought us such love
There were times of sickness
That riddled the body
And times of healing
Times when everything
Goes wrong
And times of wonderment
We all have a story
That has made us who we are today
The paths we took
The joys
And the sorrows
All helped to make us
Who we are
We can wallow in self pity
For what our past has done
To us
Or we can step out into a new world
And walk with our heads held up
For there is One who watches over us
Watches over the good and the bad
And with Him we can know
That everything is going to be alright
Everything will be alright.

Gail Adams

The Sun Will Rise

The sun will rise
Upon that day
When bride and groom
Stand side by side
And a mother
Giving birth
Life is ceasing
And life is beginning
Alarms clocks
Ringing
People moving
Vehicles going
To and fro
Seagulls following fishing boats
And the hawk
Swooping down on its prey
Squirrels are furrowing
And cows being milked
People working
Others sleeping
The antelope running
The lion in pursue
Does the air we breathe know
Do the oceans know
Does the earth know
Who knows
Who knows
For great will be the day
And mighty will it be
When our the Lord will arise
To take a stand
He will come upon
A unsuspecting people
People going about
Their daily life
Unawares to the happenings
About to happen
For in the closing of the eye
He will come within the skies
Breaking forth in wonder
Oh, are we prepared
Are we prepared
For what is about to come
Are we ready
Don’t be caught with
Your eyes shut
Keep alert
For the day I speak of
Will come quickly
Are we ready

Gail Adams

Under the Sun

Father God
You bring the sunlight
To all the earth
You cause it to shine
On the good
And the bad
Father God
You cause the crops to grow
On the good
And the bad
You see the storms that rage
And the lives that are lost
On the good
And the bad
Father God
You see as sickness
Riddles a body
And their life is snuffed out
Of the good
And the bad
Father God
You see the mother
As she gives birth
To the lifeless babe
Of the good
And the bad
Father God
You watch
As hateful men
Take a life
Of the good
And the bad
Oh Father God
Is there any difference
What goes on under the sun
Of those that love You
And adore You
Than those that curse
Your Holy name
Is there any difference
Father God
No, Father God
There is no difference
For You love us all
You love the good
And the bad
For the good
Already know You
They already have
Placed their hope
And their love
In You
On You
And, Father God
You see down the line
And You await
The call of the one
That does not know You
You await their cry
Unto You
And You will look upon this little one
No matter how evil they are
You will look upon this one
That was so lost
So evil
And Father God
When You hear their cry unto You
You will forgive
And forget
And they, too
Will come into Your family
And You will welcome them
You will open Your arms
And forget all their sins
You will cast away the memory of their evil ways
And bring them into Your family
And so, Father God
Though the sun shine on the good
And the bad
And we wonder why You do not
Separate Your love from those
That love You
And those that don’t
It is because You love us
All of us
Both the good
And the bad
And Father God
It is not You
That brings sadness
And heartache
It is not You
That brings about
Hurtful things
For You are love
You are love.

Gail Adams