God is good!
God is great!
Thank You, O Lord, for Your food,
Thank You, O Lord, for Your grace.
Holy are You known by many names,
You are that You are, one and the same.
Grant us wisdom and love today
To touch Your wonders in every way.
May Your glories never end,
Peace and goodwill towards man.
Grant me wisdom, happiness, fortune and health,
But cling not to my worldly wealth.
Let me count my blessings too,
And offer my heartfelt thanks to You.
Show me the path to seek Your way,
And gain knowledge of You everyday.
Know that life is like a play,
I am a different actor at different phase.
Look behind the roles to see who I really am,
The acts and the actor are not the same.
Sometimes we move to the rhythms of our self-written verses -
Echoes of lifetime lived through countless universes.
Go silently within, one’s true self will be unmasked,
The answer to the eternal question asked.
So step lightly in life’s cosmic dance,
Sway back and forth with the circumstance.
Celebrate life to its full extent,
And temper it with good intent.
Do no evil however small,
Or think one little kindness matters not at all.
Fill one’s house often with cheers and laughter,
The inner binds that bring a family together.
Choose wisely among the fellowship of man,
The right ones enrich the soul and the heart domain.
To know a man is to see him through his small daily deeds -
The windows to his nature and inner needs.
But beware of false friends, who are wolves in sheepskin,
They rob your fruits of labor and love, like worms from within.
And love is as tenacious as wild flowers on the heart’s plain,
Unperished by fires of bitterness, in time it will bloom again.
Do not be too occupied with work on life’s vicissitude run,
Pause briefly by the primrose path and bask your moments in the sun.
Dwell not in the shadows of regrets or sorrows,
Go forth to the light of Now and hopes of Tomorrows.
Look beyond oneself to see the grandeur of it all,
Our worlds are for us to find and explore.
Take what life has to give in graceful strides,
And trust in what the Providence provides.
Through many failed trials and successes earned,
Treat them all as life’s lessons learned.
The right moral values on the children do impart,
The true ones speak straight from the heart.
The abuse and neglect children visited by their kin
Is the true source of man’s Original Sin.
These crosses they bear and pass to others in their life,
Are the root of dark pains and endless strife.
Only when we will to forgive and forget,
Then our own true life we begin to beget.
So respect each other and treat everyone well,
As you would have them do so to yourself.
One’s road taken ends whether well or naught,
The difference hinges on the choice of just one thought.
Stray not to the cliffs of malice or jealousy,
For each reaps his own rewards and destiny.
Woes to those who choose to do harms or stir hatred’s fire,
Beholden them to the fallen hosts of the dark empire.
Revile those who incite hatred and violence in Your name,
Reveal them in the dark lights and furnace of the hell’s flame.
When a person has not gotten what he’d rightly deserved,
The hour has not come, for justice to be served.
Shield me from those who malign against me,
Malign becomes them, justice in the right degree.
No man can make me feel inferior unless I let him do,
For You are the only superior being I’ll bow down to.
Set me free of man’s blames and praises,
For Yours alone are just appraises.
Whatever others may think they see in me
Are mere reflections of themselves they see;
Give me the courage to do what is right
And the perseverance to scale my ability's height.
Let me accept mankind with all its variations,
Its follies, triumphs and aspirations.
Let me see others with non-critical eyes,
Just as one view I can’t have of a coin’s both sides.
If I look deeply within all men I’ll find
The same spark of Your Light Divine.
We are like stars that send forth Your holy Essence -
The sources of light to illuminate Your Ever Presence.
You’ve given glimpses of the Law Universal that holds sway,
And manifest through life and nature Your Mystery Play.
Whatever man perceives You to be,
To Know “we are all That” will set him free.
I’ll do my duties the best I can
To serve You and my fellow man.
Bless my family and my friends,
And favor us with Your helping hands.
May our years together be long and many;
May our hearts for each other never vary.
Let our dances in this world be merry and joyful,
And our plays on this earth rich and meaningful.
Keep us safe till our sojourns end,
And guide us as with Your intend.
Above all, this is my prayer's call:
Thy Worlds to come!
Thy Will become!
AMEN! SHALOM! SALAAM! AUM!
© October 2000 by Paul F. J. Chow
[ Author's note: This is one of my youthful ramblings. For whatever is worth, our bodies are made of stardust, our spirits are parts of the Divine, and our souls are the unions of the two. Our souls reflect our individuality.
A copy of this poem can also be found at The Web Archive. ]
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