Certain truths about human beings have never changed. We are tribal creatures in our very DNA; we have an instinctive preference for our own over others, for "in-groups" over "out-groups"; for hunter-gatherers, recognizing strangers as threats was a matter of life and death. We also invent myths and stories to give meaning to our common lives. Among those myths is the nation - stretching from the past into the future, providing meaning to our common lives in a way nothing else can. Strip those narratives away, or transform them too quickly, and humans will become disoriented. Most of us respond to radical changes in our lives, especially changes we haven’t chosen, with more fear than hope.
quote by Andrew Sullivan
Submitted by Veronica Serbanoiu
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Love
LOVE, most beautiful natural instinct life has given us,
LOVE, mother nature provides the many loves for basic survival,
LOVE, the greatest demand and motivation within humans,
LOVE, strongest mental force from these instinctive wants.
LOVE, the eternal flame of hope human beings wish for,
LOVE, the greatest physical feeling enjoyed by humans,
LOVE, compassion of affections for the good of mankind,
LOVE, romance of humans rewarded by the thirst of sexual love.
LOVE, in humans charts our course in our daily lives,
LOVE, in man holds his integrity as a human being,
LOVE, the pendulum in the philosophy of sanity,
LOVE, positive traits within humans, to befriend others in need.
LOVE, the innocent children pure in mind as their faces,
LOVE, inspiration of man to bring forth new life in humanity,
LOVE, sharing to give, to be honest, to have faith, to see God,
LOVE, others feelings, to understand, to be trusted, to be thankful.
LOVE, the force of humanities, to live together in peace,
LOVE, throughout the World keeps Nations at peace,
LOVE, motivations of human beings for continuous existence,
LOVE, hope for continual survival of "Worldly Co-existence."
poem by Jim DiGregorio
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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On the Edge With Lost Meaning
Arming themselves,
With guns and fear.
Snap, crackle pop.
Dropped minds,
Nonstopping.
Inciting, backbiting threats appear.
On landscapes groomed...
With more of this looming.
And...
These are the people who pray under steeples,
With hate!
In their eyes.
These are the people who say they live lives,
That are straight.
But gutterized in hiding.
And...
These are the people with morals that others debate.
To criticize.
But gone denied.
On the edge with lost meaning,
They choose to demean.
Those who speak truth and appear on the scene.
Confused hypocrites sitting on the ledge.
Threatening to jump if their needs are not fed.
And...
These are the people who say they live lives,
That are straight.
On the edge with lost meaning.
And...
These are the people with morals that others debate.
On the edge with lost meaning.
And...
These are the people who pray under steeples,
With hate!
On the edge with lost meaning.
And...
These are the people without visions forward to make.
And have chosen to not pray with faith!
Oh oooh...
And,
These are the people who say they live lives,
That are straight.
But gutterized in hiding.
And...
These are the people with morals that others debate.
To criticize.
But gone denied.
Arming themselves,
With guns and fear.
Snap, crackle pop.
Dropped minds,
Nonstopping.
And these are the people who've chosen themselves,
To eliminate.
On the edge with lost meaning...
With no brakes applied to their fates!
Oh oooh..
NO?
poem by Lawrence S. Pertillar
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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The Future Of The Past
New times are now old ones,
Old ones are now history,
History becomes ancient,
Ancient becomes unknown,
Unknown shifts though time,
Shaping and molding in every which way,
Unknown times become myths,
Myths become religions,
False becomes truth,
Truths move to morals,
Morals are now what we live by,
Now has just become then,
The past has once been the future,
The future will soon become the past,
You were once born in the future of the past,
But the past has caught up,
And taken you with it.
Like a deadly arrow the past pierces life,
The future itself becomes victim to its strike.
As if to be Bonnie and Clyde,
Hand in hand the two opposites collide,
Together bringing everything to their long awaited fate.
Doing what they do best toward their ever most passions,
The future and the past are, and were, the two deadliest assassins,
Today,
Tomorrow,
And yesterday...
poem by Justin MonacoBarnes
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Men do not invent Myths. They only invent fables, and tell lies. True Myths create themselves, and find their expression in the men who serve their purpose.
quote by Denis Johnston
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Ask Not For Whom The Bell Tolls
It is a matter of life and death.
We sense our mortality in the destiny of another.
This isn't easy for us to confront.
We seek ignorance of such final thoughts.
Only those who have been made aware,
Can truly face death.
We look at its empty eyes and see nothing.
At first, we are afraid.
This is our human existence at stake.
If we were merely mortals, then this would be normal.
However, humans are not merely mortals.
Every single word within us cries out against the waste.
I am unique. So are you.
There is an expression,
'We will never see his like again.'
Even so, Easter has taught us
That God preserves the life force beyond death.
It is the hope of resurrection
That sustains us in this life.
Those that have this faith in God,
Believe in the past, the present AND the future
And we therefore spend our lives
In prayer and good works.
No matter where we are,
While there is a single thought left within us,
We can still pray.
This is life.
Not the striving for more and more things,
While others starve to death.
Let's be more sympathetic
In regard to complete strangers,
Men, women and children
Facing terrifying squalor, disease and persecution.
It's easy to feel sorry
For the good old Georges of this world,
Because they are the good ones we don't want to lose.
But what about the tiny babies
Who haven't the strength to lift a finger
To do any good works?
They are more deserving if left to live a full life
Than the ones who have already lived for decades...
Many of these have never seen a shoe...
And they don't even know that each one of them
Has an eternal soul...
poem by Denis Martindale
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Keep It Dark
Found that man reported missing,
He wandered in his home.
It dont seem to bad if you consider
Just what hes been through.
Seems he met up with a gang of thieves,
Who mistook him for a man of means,
They locked him up then found he had no money,
So they let him go again.
Now hes back at home and happy
Just to see the kids.
I wish that I could really tell you
All the things that happened to me
And all that I have seen.
A world full of people their hearts full of joy,
Cities of light with no fear of war,
And thousands of creatures with happier lives,
And dreams of a future with meaning and no need to hide.
Oh, keep it dark.
It seems strange to have to lie,
About a world so bright.
And tell instead a made-up story,
From the world of night.
I wish, that I could really tell you,
All the things that happened to me
And all that I have seen,
A world full of people their hearts full of joy,
Cities of light with no fear of war,
And thousands of creatures with happier lives,
And dreams of a future with meaning and no need to lie,
No need to hate,
No need to hide.
Oh, keep it dark.
song performed by by Genesis
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Death is a part of all our lives. Whether we like it or not, it is bound to happen. Instead of avoiding thinking about it, it is better to understand its meaning. We all have the same body, the same human flesh, and therefore we will all die. There is a big difference, of course, between natural death and accidental death, but basically death will come sooner or later. If from the beginning your attitude is "Yes, death is part of our lives," then it may be easier to face.
quote by Dalai Lama
Submitted by Veronica Serbanoiu
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Beliefs have the power to create and the power to destroy. Human beings have the awesome ability to take any experience of their lives and create a meaning that disempowers them or one that can literally save their lives.
quote by Tony Robbins
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Short
The depth of life
The length thereof
The depth of a life
The years thereof
The depth of your life
The distance from your first wisp of
Earth's worried air of
Life to the finish line of
A life well lived or of
One which was spent waiting for
The future which may or may not
Hold you in it for
Today is given you to
Make all the difference you can and to
Smell all the flowers you can and to
Love as deeply as you can and to
Let laughter break some ribs and to
Let rain drown your tears and to
Give yourself away and to
Worship as truly as you can and to
Leave your worries in yesterday then
Do the things fear won't let you do then
Say the things that matter most then
Do the things you haven't done then
Do the things you have to do and then
Give a life a meaning
Find life's meaning
Hidden in love's meaning
And your life meaning
Breathing in God's meaning
And pick up a book of meanings
To check the short meaning
Of short and find that that's the
Aching distance from the
First intake of air to the
Last release of the same.
poem by Jenim Dibie
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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It may be shocking to some people in this country to realize that, without meaning to do so, they hold views in common with Hitler when they preach discrimination against other religious, racial or economic groups.
quote by Henry A. Wallace
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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The people we lost in Aurora loved, and were loved. They were mothers and fathers; husbands and wives; sisters and brothers; sons and daughters; friends and neighbors. They had hopes for the future and dreams that were not yet fulfilled. And if there's anything to take away from this tragedy, it's a reminder that life is fragile. Our time here is limited and it is precious. And what matters in the end are not the small and trivial things which often consume our lives. It's how we choose to treat one another, and love one another. It's what we do on a daily basis to give our lives meaning and to give our lives purpose. That's what matters. That's why we're here.
quote by Barack Obama
Submitted by Veronica Serbanoiu
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Embryonic Homicide
Life is same, no matter young or old;
Life is precious, more than silver, gold;
Life isn’t commodity that is sold;
Life’s from God, not from this nasty world!
Alike is life in children and adults;
Alike is life ‘in utero’, ‘ex womb’;
Alike is life of born and that unborn;
All human lives are equal before God.
All human beings are in God’s semblance;
Each body gets a soul that everlasts;
The love of God is shown to all creatures;
The Life-Giver alone can take back life!
The Embryo has life that’s God-destined;
The Embryo was formed by love of God;
The Embryo must grow by divine Word;
The Embryo has soul like anyone!
Why kill the embryo for its small parts?
Why destroy one life to save another?
Why treat the embryo with great disdain?
Why murder lives in womb for sake of born?
The embryo is healthy, not diseased;
The embryo is living, not deceased;
The embryo is child, awaiting birth;
The embryo is human too and worth!
No beast kills babies that are still unborn;
The world demands kindness to animals;
Why not protect the human lives unborn?
Preserve the dignity of life in womb!
Could God watch human lives desecrated?
Would God spare merciless human beings?
The embryonic life is life as well;
All ruthless murderers shall land in hell!
Copyright by Dr John Celes 3-9-2009
poem by John Celes
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Live In The Past
For those who are destined to live in the past
Each 'What could have been? ' is amassed
To a degree where no other timeframe can last.
'If onlys' overshadow the present so that today
Is doubted, then cursed; finally withering away.
The resulting void means they'll never have a chance
To even hope for a future to unfold and advance.
Not an instant or an inch of the past can be changed.
This is why it's sad for lives the past has rearranged.
For these tragic lives it actually can be said
That with no present or future they're virtually dead.
poem by Gregory Huyette
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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The End
Death, the final equalizer;
be it a leaf, human or star
their end is inevitable.
Can it easily be conceived?
will it truly be understood?
Do their unique differences:
diminutive or gigantic
change deaths meaning and concept?
Does any of that matter much?
Humans perceive death as macabre
a horror of loss and decay.
leaf and star suffer the same fate
yet both lives end naturally
without a promised afterlife.
Octal Syllabic Verse
poem by Albert Ahearn
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Myths are stories that express meaning, morality or motivation. Whether they are true or not is irrelevant.
quote by Michael Shermer
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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I Believe In Nigeria
With so many battles and killings,
with slim chances of healings.
Our peace has been taking away from us,
and our glory days are far behind us.
Our nation has been torn apart,
by those whose love are from our heart.
With tears runing down our cheek,
with the killings and violence at its peak.
Every where is been flooded by innocent blood,
and our treasure been lost in the mud.
Everyday we live our lives in fear,
with so much pain that we can't bear.
People been nurtured to the highest level of hatred,
and now innocent lives are been affected.
Hatred has given birth to death,
and death taking away our precious life on earth.
With people living their lives in hell,
even when they mean to do well.
Properties are been destroyed everyday,
and thousands of lives are been laid to rest each day.
Is it a crime to be a human? ,
or is it a sin to be a nigerian? .
Is it a cause to crave for peace in our nation? ,
a nation thats moving closer to the point of destruction.
Each day our kneels are planted on the ground in prayers,
to erradicate pains that is been inflited by peace haters.
All i know is that all hope is not lost,
because in the ebullent nigerian spirit i trust.
No matter the trouble we may be going through today,
it will be a testimony we'll say some day.
For every pain that we feel in our heart now,
the peace of heaven will erase it some how.
For every sacrifice we make for the peace of our country,
will go a long way to erase every of our misery.
No matter the level of destruction in our neighbour hood,
i believe one day everything will change for good.
poem by Stanley Oguh
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Multicultural Melbourne
Melbourne Immigration Museum
I stroll,
Past history,
Past lives,
Past stories.
I see for the first time MY nation’s history,
My nations courage,
My nations suffering,
My eyes glaze over
And realisation creeps up on me.
I see stories of the past and present,
Played out before me,
The lives of Australia’s people,
Australia’s history
poem by Katie Anne
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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A Message To Humanity
How an amazing is the one who's pleasure in life is giving
How peaceful would be our lives
If everyone of us had the sensitivity against of the responsibilities as a human being
How beautiful is the soul who lives to give
How admiring is the one who puts the seeds of the love
All around with every steps that he takes surrounds the seeds of love Every where
Everyone of us will born and will die
How blissful is the one who's pleasure in the life is the hospitality for his brother man
Still I have things to do before I go my way
How pity is to waist a lifetime for nothingness
Our lives must be more meaningful than to be wasted for suffer and pain
For fake joys Whice steal away our years and more
Be aware of your steps let's their prints leave behind a valuable messages
The life should be lived for goodness and charity
How its meaningless the life that we do waist
For invaluable life games
The meaning of happiness is not hidden behind the trunks of diamond
Neither in selfishness and the love of posessing
Those who love to take for me their lives are all fake
The life should be precious than to be lived for nothingness
How its pity the life which is wasted without real love
Without understanding the meaning of the humanity's love
And what a noble message it holds inside
poem by Sossi Khachadourian
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Imagine that you're an intelligent extraterrestrial, concerned only with verifiable truths. You discover a species that has divided itself into thousands - no, by now millions - of tribal groups holding an incredible variety of beliefs about the origin of the universe and the way to behave in it. Although many of them have ideas in common, even when there's 99% overlap, the remaining one percent's enough to set them killing and torturing each other, over trivial points of doctrine, utterly meaningless to outsiders. "How to account for such irrational behavior? Lucretius put the dot on i when he stated that religion was the by-product of fear - a reaction to a mysterious and often hostile universe. For much of human prehistory, it may have been a necessary evil - but why was it so much more evil than necessary - and why did it survive when it was no longer necessary?... Isn’t killing people in the name of god a pretty good definition of insanity?
quote by Arthur C. Clarke
Submitted by Catalin Popescu
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The Ways of Life
Do not conform to the ways
‘The ways' are but a way to capture your spirit,
To break your heart,
To kill your soul.
The ways cause tears to run down my face,
In the dark,
In the light,
In the twilight.
For no matter what time of day it is nothing changes,
People go through the motions,
Like animals,
Like robots.
No one is willing to explore and enjoy life,
We don't live, we exist,
We just stroll through our lives,
Meaningless, pointless.
Work is everyone's first priority,
But why?
Isn't work supposed to be a way to pay for our lives?
Not the meaning for our lives...
poem by Lenore Lee
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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