Happy New Year, a Commnetary on 2013 (c) By Polly Guerin

Must 2013 conclude this New Year?
I had more to do, it was clear

Each month accelerated into the next
I had no time to ponder to expect

Each day rushed by in a flash
I could not hold on with a grasp

Though I tried the minutes melted
Day after day soon unsheltered

I declared, “Hold Back the Time,”
Give me chance to reflect, unwind

And recall the episodes of the year
Folks who left and were very dear

My darling friend Elaine went to rest
She was amazing… the very best

Peter sold his loft and took off
Lives in another country no frost

Dirk & Chi went up to Maine
The social scene never the same

And Mikey bought a house far north
Trees and mountains are his source

Helen Gardner settled in Rochester
At 94 and became a happy Nester

Shirley was ensconced alone elsewhere
A great talent, now dementia without care

While Dianne kept up her phone calls
She went to New Jersey before her fall

As for me, I’m grateful, rich with health
After all it is my reward and great wealth

Joan continues to be my favorite fan
She loves everything I do, so I can

Tell her everything that’s on my mind
Her response is so fine, and very kind

I cherish her friendship and Lois Ewald, too
A finer spiritual woman that I ever knew

Carolyn resides alone in a residential place
Divorced, now out of the life's frantic race

My social agenda is fully booked again
I’ll keep my spirits up to the very end

And remember how fortunate am I
To enable this creativity as I aspire

To take more time to pause and admire
How much to cherish each year’s desire

And give thanks for all the joy before I expire!!!

CHRISTMAS REVERIE 2013 (c) By Polly Guerin

Christmas came too soon this year

Said I, “Give me Time” it was clear

The days marched forward in a flash

My calendar’s schedule did clash

Holiday parties took up the space

On a fast course I joined the race

But, one day I set back to recall

The days past when it was fall


Give me back sweet September

Those halcyon days I remember

And October’s blissful autumn s

Ended so swiftly, I did not know

How to put time back now in reverse

Is the world accelerating? What a curse!

So let’s treasure the time we have untold

Enjoy each moment before we are old

With upbeat expectations greet the holiday

Be glad we are here for this I sincerely pray

Good tidings to all; have health and good cheer

May it be a splendid and less hectic New Year!

FICKLE FROST (c) By Polly Guerin

(Image: Winter's Frost by Shadrach Ensor)

fineartamerica.com

Must the frost of winter come so soon?
Autumn left behind was still in bloom

Summer’s languid days were the best
Gave us time to ponder, time to rest

Yet winter snaps her fickle frigid finger
We rush home alone, we do not linger

Ensconced in the cocoon warmth of our abode
We curl up in cozy fleeces to beat the cold

And confined here by the fickle frost
Alas, what care I, if at times I get lost

In winter’s lounging longing nights
Seeking silent sentiment until the light

When daybreak casts its golden hue
Over the mysterious brooding brew

And awakens our solemn silent slumber
A new day breaks with wakeful wonder!!!


Polly Guerin is the author of THE COOPER-HEWITT DYNASTY OF NEW YORK (History Press 2012)

A SOLDIER'S CHRISTMAS 2013 (c) By Polly Guerin

Somewhere in a silent night

Where angels begin their flight

The snow blankets the earth

Newfound peace we search

Mysterious snowflakes on the windowpane

With untold stories of a soldier’s pain

Somewhere a mother’s loving lullaby

Recalls a cherished child bye, bye, bye

Muffled voices heard round the world

Storyteller’s lament those lives unfurled

Safe are we tucked securely in our bed

Cold comfort that the soldiers led

So we who dream on the midnight stars

Remember those young gone away so far

Into foreign lands where they died

A world full of pity too late cried

Somewhere the sad bells are ringing

Yet the angels rise up and singing

Have you heard the loss is profound?

Tears cannot wash away the sound

And a mother’s heart is broken

Silent night, not a word spoken

Look at the wondrous star in sky

Yet we wonder, “Why, Why, Why!!!”



Polly Guerin: Author: Cooper-Hewitt Dynasty of New York (History Press 2013)

AUTUMN LEAVES/CHANGING LIVES (c) By Polly Guerin

The countryside is ablaze with autumn leaves

Red, russet, burnt sienna before the freeze

They burst forth shedding their verdant glory

Renewing life it’s like a newborn story

Gold leafed splendor by the painterly brush

The colors are life changing, rich and lush

T’is time for you to make changes, too

Throw off the old mundane cloak, renew

With crimson red for enthusiasm as trigger

Embrace the passion with new found vigor

Vibrant yellow for courage and laughter

It’s a new outlook that you should be after

The angelic blue sky every true and serene

Exudes cool confidence, fosters dreams

Golden orange is ablaze, warm this year

With your outgoing nature that’s clear

It’s not quite winter, some green remains

A preferred color of genius, never the same

And pink-tinged forest buds remind us

Romance is forever charged with love

A new season, a new life changing time

Take a cue from autumn leaves’ prime

Change your colors and your attitude

Don’t get stuck in the gray latitude

Move into a colorful spectrum today

Open up the rainbow and begin to play.

Polly Guerin Author: Cooper Hewitt Dynasty of New York (History Press 2012) www.pollytalk.com

BITTERSWEET REFLECTIONS Autumn 2013 (c) By Polly Guerin

Life can be bitter and sweet at the same time

Like the woody vine its berries cling and climb

Its prolific orange and yellow berries system

Resembles weapons of judgment and criticism

It does its worst in a blaze of autumn glory

Like life’s complaints it’s the same old story

Its thick leafy vines overtake trees and shrubs

Even grasses eventually succumb to its rubs

Smothering other participants like the leafy vine

You too may over-compete an take over in time

Don’t let tempers flare up under any phase

In a few weeks the woods will be ablaze

Producing a mixture of pain and pleasure

Bittersweet resembles life in every measure

Yet its perennial beauty makes a pretty wreath

Instead it is peace and harmony we seek

Take a new path, adopt a fresh perspective

Don’t let cliinging vines curtail your exit

Every bittersweet memory brings a treasure

Discards pain and renews pleasure.

WAVES OF PERSEVERANCE (c) By Polly Guerin

I hear the water lapping, snapping at the shore

I wonder, I ponder what it has in store?

Slurp, slurp, blurt the waves dance on the sand

Rushing, lashing the shore from some distant land

A journey deep in the mysterious watery core

Never wavering steadfast against the tides of war

Traveled through the ages to reach new ground

Bearing with it the slurppy, slapping sound

The rhythmic whispering waves of one's life

Resounds in the pattern of the water’s strife

The pounding surf thrusts itself against the shore

Sending out all the pain that we may have bore

I hear the cry the crashing waves from the depths

Renewing spirit and soul—renewing future steps

The slurping, sloshing sound beats upon the shore

Releasing all the tangled angst I ever felt before

Taking with it all concerns and heartbreak

The water clears the mind, does not forsake

But renews the heart to find the depths of love

An ocean of happiness sent from nature above

Like the repetitive waves be patient with yourself

Put concerns of yesteryear away on the shelf

The force of the waves' unfaltering perseverance

Embrace its challenge with strength and clearance

Refreshed the rhythmic waves roll out their hum

Go softly, gently forward, now claim the sum!