Today is Friday…I want to share what I’m thankful for.
Today, I am grateful for this past Monday…It was a day that followed a night of restless sleep. It was a day that brought me to meet old work mates, and several new. It was awkward and uncomfortable part of the time. Monday was the first day of a new job. Monday was awesome.
Today, I’m very grateful for Tuesday past. Again, I was tired and grumpy, being forced to learn and retain, and be nice to others when I’d rather have been in bed. Being gainfully employed is a gift regardless. It was indeed a great day.
Today, I’m elated to have had Wednesday…I was stressed, I was challenged…I was spread thin and looking forward to my chair when I got home. I made money all day. I bonded with folks around me and grew confident. It was a perfect day.
Today I’m grateful for yesterday. The reflections of earlier this week were polished with a gladness, because I was involved, had prayed a lot for those in my life fighting the good fights, mourning the loss of family, struggling with daily life. Prayers are being answered.
Today, I’m grateful for my hard and trying week, I’m grateful for the ability to lean very hard on The Serenity Prayer, on The Lord’s Prayer…I’m grateful at the prospect of starting work at noon and working till midnight.
I’m not looking toward the weekend, for though there will still be a Saturday and Sunday, I won’t have a break from my tasks…and may work both days. For this I’m thankful.
Today and every day, I’m thankful for the ones before. They are, after all, what got me to this point. That is a gift regardless of the temper of them.
Even for days spent in worry, I’m glad there is God and his Son to pray to when troubling concerns accompany the passing of days.
I didn’t wish my week away in anticipation of Friday and the two days that follow. I earned, I learned, the night oils were burned…and I grew.
God bless all of you and your well lived weeks and well earned days of rest…and if there was no rest to be had, I hope you are thankful for the ability to endure and persevere whilst rising the occasion.
Have a great Friday friends, and do spend it well. No, in fact DON’T ‘spend’ your days. LIVE them, always. Matthew
Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category
Giving thanks…
Posted in Uncategorized on April 11, 2014| Leave a Comment »
A Collection of Hopeful Thoughts…
Posted in Faith and Hope, inspirational, life lessons, people, Uncategorized on March 26, 2014| 1 Comment »
Living without friends is akin to sailing a vessel without wind. You’re at the mercy of the tides, the currents, and the hours can be oh so lonesome…Moments of gladness, joy, loss and anxious waiting are far better spent with the gentle lifting and urging of the breezes a true friend brings. No sadder sight than a sail left to droop and sigh, without the accompaniment of nature’s companion to set her on the edge of a driving wind…so too is a soul alone and in need of the friendly breeze to fill the heart and send one off with a knowing and warmth inside…
Navigating a sea with no sense of direction doesn’t mean you’re lost. It just means you’ll set your destination after you reach a distant shore…It is called adventure, and without taking chances, there can be no mystery, none of the joy at finding what you never knew you were seeking…Risk a little, wander some, plan to make no plan, and live!
Living without love is having thirst without water. A parched heart is faltered and left in longing of the hydrating drops and bursts of life giving blood, in essence; Love is life, fruitful and merciful. Almost always, a mortal heart will resume to beating when blood returns…That remains miracle, as does love. And a kind love is makes one’s pulse seem to skip a beat…which is the best love of all.
Flying without vision is to sing in a windstorm. Let the gusts and gale accompany your serenading. There will be height; and a soaring sensation, a journey, a giving, a taking. A sensation of all and nothing all at once. To sing to the heavens or glide in them is a gift…but the gift remains only in the heart of the fortunate soul there doing either one. Have faith, open your eyes, rise above the storm, lift your voice, and bask in the moment…Soar.
Walking under sun shrouding clouds leaves one without a shadow. And yet you know that a breeze can part clouds and instantly an accompanying shadow joins in cadence. So too goes faith. One just has to believe and trust you’re not alone, in life or the universe…even in the dark of night or the fury of a storm. The calm follows the gale, dusk leads to night, and the sun emerges to usher in dawn and hasten darkness to hide the land and sea elsewhere. These things are certain, so too should be trust and faith. One can find light in shade, and certainty in uncertainty. Believe.
Living without faith is likened to attempting to fly a kite without string…No matter the design and material of a wind seeking craft, even in a stiff breeze, without the freedom of a binding string; there is no lift, no hope of flight. There can be no sense of a guiding hand nor a gentle tug, or a subtle release of the line, to momentarily remind you that no one makes the journey without a light, a hope, a link…a life line that gives flight and brings you to heavenly heights and gifts a celestial view of the world…surrender yourself and accept strength from above.
Matthew Lyle…(inspired by Lynnclaire, thanks to you fair lady)
break in winter weather…
Posted in Uncategorized on February 14, 2014| Leave a Comment »
It is warm and kinder outside today, and it’s wonderful to have my front door open. To hear a slow freight train wander past with horn in full song. And to see the sunshine without the normal freezing at this time of year.
I opened the door a while ago and could hear songbirds, a quiet breeze, and lingered autumn leaves making their way past on the street, or simply dancing in a lopsided circle...nature seems to somehow know how to make a celebration at every opportunity. We can learn from her. I know I can embrace and hold near to me a day or two of false spring, even whilst knowing that winter will soon have her way with us again.
Enjoy the day friends…I’m going to venture out soon and squint a bit at this solar gift well aloft of the chaos here on the ground. Matthew.
Time in a garden on a winter afternoon…
Posted in Gardening, inspirational, seasons, Uncategorized, tagged garden club poem, garden club writing, gardener in winter, gardener poetry, gardener's prose, gardening, winter garden on January 21, 2014| Leave a Comment »
I stole away the other afternoon…to convene with some memories made in the lighter months. I went to the home of a friend, a lover of sun and all things green that thrive in the sprinkler mist, sun showers, and morning dew.
There were none of those things there to greet me. Just a benign winter sun, giving light without heat and a breeze not to offer relief from heat. But it did deliver a chill and need to face my back to it.
And there was the walk of cobblestones with surf smoothed bits of colored glass, pebble, and shell in between. We had wandered the shore on serene afternoons with a dream and design in mind, that beckoned us to U.S. 101 and beaches to the south.
And on this day of frost and fading light…I was again wandering in brine soaked sand with the surf in my ears, and gulls hovering and singing their shoreline declarations in the steady breeze. And out of habit, I reached for that familiar hand to hold…and instead found but a memory. Ah, but such memories are so worth embracing and recalling time and again.
Over half way through January and the daylight gets longer with each dawn. I see through the shadows and bare branches that the crow still feeds, the squirrel sleeps, and the critters in pasture huddle near to each other. And today I stand near to the place where the spring roses go to bud, the bulbs slowly reach, and the robin seeks a place of safety to fashion a nest…but this is all months away. For now I’ll unwrap a few saved moments and memories as I stand in the midst of this slumbered and treasured place…the fond things I’ve saved up for a rainy day. It’s not quite raining yet, but those ominous clouds are sign that a stormy evening is on the way…
It’s all good and it’s alright, for I know that the green is on the way…I saw winter wheat decorating a brown field just the other day. And a hawk was on the wing, in search of company, of a meal on the run. In search of a warm breeze, should the western gorge send a sweet Chinook stirring this way…And you can be sure that I too will turn my cheek to the sun then, and let a window down enough to feel a hint of spring on a winter’s day.
And I know you’ll occasionally look upon the hoses for watering, and tools for tilling and turning and planting of starts, seeds, bulb and the promising bare stem…And like a prayer uttered, we look on longingly and fondly, and busy ourselves while we hope and wait. God will answer, and winter will always be followed with spring.
With the gathering of fog on the rivers near to here, I listen to the chorus from a V of Canada geese passing overhead.
And I know you rest assured by a faded rose hanging in the place near the book shelf, and over the mirror in your room. And know the gloves and watering can are eagerly awaiting your touch, as you anticipate that day as well. For now, I will wander near to the places there on a quiet afternoon, where nature and your knowing hands will soon provide me blossom, bud, gifts of new green, and heavenly scented blooms.
Matthew Landsman
Mid winter and remembering…
Posted in life lessons, people, romance, seasons, Uncategorized, tagged january writing, winter love, winter love poem, winter poetry, winter prose on January 19, 2014| Leave a Comment »
…middle of winter, thinking about June. The sun did shine a little today but at 23 degrees, I cursed the sunset and wish the day didn’t have to end so soon. But I put extra comforters on my bed, and wished I had a fireplace to sit by and compose words of summer, tales of friends…rhymes of my old loves as the frost descends at afternoon’s end.
Walkin’ the floor, folding my clothes…longing to be able to feel warm grass on bare toes, and having a drink from a garden hose. I watched a man at work the other day, pruning the rose bushes that bloomed till November. Even the flowers that had faded and withered still held onto the breezes of late July, the summer rains, and passers by…as did I.
I thought about sunrise at four am, dreamed about an open window and a nap in the afternoon. I sighed a winter sigh and looked to the west, looked to the sunset and realized that I hadn’t had dinner yet. And I reached into my pocket to find but an empty place, so I took my hand out and reached for you there. And I did find you tucked away warm and smiling in a dusty memory, found you waiting for me as I whispered a prayer. I sang a love song softly to your faded picture there…sang a song of lost loves and solemn days. As a mournful dove joined with me in the chorus before taking wing for a warmer place to sleep away night.
Middle of winter and the music is playing low. January slipping quietly by and reminds me to not wish it away…cause even un-embraced winter days are worthy and needful, and make great memories. And I will laugh of such nights in the July afternoons, but for now, you’re all I have, and I’ll have you along with a warm pair of socks and a James Taylor tune. And I’ll sing our song there in the shower as the suds roll to the drain. And I’ll be quietly reminded, that our time ended too soon.
It’s the middle of winter, and I’m thinking about June…thinking about long shadows and the rustling of leaves, and wishing our time hadn’t ended so soon. Matthew
An early start and drive through the countryside…
Posted in Uncategorized on January 16, 2014| Leave a Comment »
She calls to me, does infant dawn. The break of day is the night time’s spawn…born of the dew and misty air. A fresh beginning to mark new starts and break the toils of yesterday.
I try to pledge to mornings fair, to dedicate anew my efforts, my intentions and attention. I offer a fresh round of plea and prayer, of attitude grown ragged by the harsher moments from the day before.
But mostly, I embrace the sunrise with a grateful knowing that God had plans for me again and let me wake, let me ponder and and asked of me to honor my gift here. To effect a positive air with these words and a chance that I might extend his intention to heal the good souls, and even the bad…
And I answer his calling once more as your humble scribe……And I thank God for offering me another day to make my way and hopefully make a difference…Happy Wednesday all…Matthew
Tuesday morning…after the storm
Posted in Uncategorized on January 14, 2014| Leave a Comment »
Things that hadn’t before, did move under the stress of her fury. She left them deposited here and there, underneath and on top of places. The howl and moan of the night winds are at times an accompaniment, others just a series of bumps in the night that have my kitty on edge, and me rolling over and focusing on sleep again.
She lifts the desert at random places, devils and clouds of dust and silt. Tumbleweeds can sometimes pass a slow moving car, assault from the side and front…hitching a ride on a bumper for miles at a time. She gifts us with leaves from trees a mile away…gifts us with an opportunity to be grateful for the calm when she finally blows out of town.
This morning I am sneezing and tearing from the assault of flying and floating matter in the air…but there is calm, a gentle nature to the day this morning. I hope to see a grand sunrise, a flat river, and have an easy drive through the gap at Wallula, and over Nine Mile Hill. I plan on enjoying the journey, tending to ponder and compose, rather than fight the wheel and earn my miles…
Mostly I will pray for my souls close to me who fight the good fight. Pray for the lonely to find company, the angry to fine serenity, the tired to find a hidden reserve, the resigned to find faith. And the masses to know what love is, and to know they are loved…Matthew
come Monday…
Posted in Uncategorized on January 6, 2014| Leave a Comment »
Monday morning…about to head out in the pre-dawn frozen morn.
I will take thoughts of you with me, visions and memories.
I will mark the miles with a recollection of soft talks we had, mark the miles with a sigh and a quiet smile.
There were some great days, some even greater nights. There were moments to write home about, and some best left to whither and let to be carried away in the winds…
This will be a good morning…to watch the sun rise on a wintery world, watch the mist rise off of rivers, and paint the valleys with fog and frost.
I think perhaps the spirits of loved ones lost do join with us on such foggy morns…and hide in plain sight…and I can feel their warmth, a gentle caress, a sweet knowing there is life in the beyond…On foggy days, I can feel the love.
Monday morning calling out to me, out to have a warm cup, a frosty rear window, and misty breath in the morning air…
Monday morning, I look forward to you, every minute is an opportunity to make a difference, to be made to grow…to be among others…and to share a knowing smile.
Monday morning, I know that you’ll meet me half way and rest easy on my shoulder, and I on yours…
Take care, stay safe and I hope the breezes are at your back, and the sunrise is kind…MLL
Reunion…
Posted in life lessons, romance, Uncategorized on January 3, 2014| Leave a Comment »
Sometimes she’d come to me after sunset…
With a fire in her eyes…and even the darkness was but a whim.
She’d look into my eyes, sigh a shaky sigh…then peer right through me…
And there would come that smile, that whisper, that toss of the head, a cascade of shining hair.
And that laugh, part whisper, part pleasure, part victory…and all passion.
Then the silence was all around, but for a ragged breath, a hunger, an urgency.
There too was water, a clinging, a shiver, warmth, and a soft winter sky.
An occasional game of billiards, and a passionate welcome at the door, that took me to place where the tiny deaths beckoned, whispered and ushered both to a place so right, so rare…
Some days there was a journey, a turn behind the wheel of classic steel…and lessons that would take one through journey, after journey…and one day came that drive…to travel for a decade, then another.
And in the passing of time came those moments revisited, those nights recalled…laughter echoes and sighs again warming…
But there was always a desire for the creation of fresh memories, new moments…and bubbles churning in the night.
But mostly an absence, a wonder, a plea in the night…and a fond recollection time and again.
Then one day a quiet and tentative reunion over miles, over years, overdue…
And again I’ve heard the laughter, read words that validate and bring a tear and a smile…And the knowing of things again all but forgotten…
…and I say it again, and again…thank you for answered prayers, for reuniting the one that touched, and the other that felt…then returned the favor…and once more accompanies me on some enchanted nights…
I look to the horizon, to the south and east. And come evening…I sigh and settle…and hope perhaps for a call…Matthew.
Thoughts on printing books of my writings:
Posted in Uncategorized on December 27, 2013| 2 Comments »
Greetings readers, I am working on a plan to prepare some of my writings for publishing in a hard cover book. The process will have no sponsorship, so I will initially only have them printed to order on a prepaid basis. I think the first edition will be text only, with hopes of adding my own photos in a later printing run.
I have enough material for two kid’s books, and about three books for the grown folks. I am still seeking an illustrator for the kid’s books, simple line drawings only, with color in strategic spots on areas of specific pages only.
My books will be self titled as is my web page, “Uncommon Thoughts from a Common Man”, with a plan to add volumes Two and Three in order.
I have my kid’s pieces entitled, “Animal Cookies and Salsa”, and “Top Side Down and Bottom Side Up” already written. I plan on creating more than one version of the second title to fit the needs of different family members and combinations.
Please let me know how you all feel about getting in on the ground level of this effort. I feel my works might gain an investor or two after I have put together a couple books on my own and hopefully been able to generate interest from a publisher.
It is much like getting an education/degree, but not being able to find a job because you have no on the job experience. You all have been reading my stuff for some time, but I haven’t published anything on paper yet, so no publisher is interested in me due to lack of prior exposure, (aka, on the job experience.) I am looking into publishing the books for Nooks and Kindles too, but I like the idea of having the option of offering signed and dedicated hard cover books personalized for my friends and readers.
In any case, this is the plan still very much in a state of flux…let me know if there is sincere interest in the humble beginnings of me honoring my gift with words getting out there to a larger audience. Thanks, Matthew Landsman
Matthew Lyle Landsman 