Steve Haarman

The two women walked on
Opposite sides of the road
They greeted each other at
The crosswalk; then continued
Earnestly on their paths;
Never to see each other again

Stanski
October 27, 2021 ^

I’m never really baffled but 
sometimes I will say that I am.  
Someone said I looked like Sean Connelly 
after I had grown a moustache and 
chin goatee and I am thinking, 
isn’t it the other way around, 
that Sean looks a little bit like me.  
It is perplexing and that 
might be a better word.  
I stopped at a service station and 
the lady asked about 
the Connelly possibility and 
I told her that I was the poet
A.H.McKricken and she said
I knew I knew you from someplace.  
Leave sleeping dogs lie, 
I thought as I moved on to 
the wedding hall I was looking for.  
A few made the suggestion at 
the reception which followed about 
who I looked like and I just shook my head.  
I was wearing blue jeans and 
a dark navy shirt with no tie to a wedding.  
Once there I felt overdressed, but then, 
thought I could unbutton the top of 
the shirt and walk around as if in 
a state of aloofness, but this was not my day.  
I was a guest and this is how 
Sean would have handled it.

A.H.McKricken aka Stanski
October 27, 2021 ^

One 
Waning moon
A crescent sliver
High in the evening sky
Beneath it towered
Purple mountains majesty 

Two 

Waning moon in
Early night sky with
A line of magenta
Just over
Purple-black
Mountain peaks

Three 

Orange-red eastern sky
Magenta filled northwest
Yellow crescent moon 
Above and subtle
We see beauty
He seems to nod
“I know”

Standki
October 26, 2021 ^

A dog barked and barked
As I approached it on the road
When quite near it cowered
Quit barking and backed away
Not unlike many bullies 
Stanski
October 25, 2021 ^

Whenever I travel I feel your
Presence next to me.  I talk to you
And want to be as a brother to you.  
The Holy Spirit is within me
A storm announces itself
And lightning and thunder
Light and shake the skies
Windows are closed and the
Wonders of nature are displayed
In an evident way.  It is beautiful
In its own way.  It may cause damage
But so do many things.  It may
Wake us up to being aware of
Universal needs and how we
Can help with God’s grace.

Stanski
October 25, 2021 ^

Although we are all one in the spiritual sense, 
we ache, suffer pain, even exhaustion 
wondering why we seem to see only our differences.  
We cannot walk in everyone’s shoes for even a moment, 
let alone a day, but are wise enough to 
know that we all experience and 
react differently to the stimuli about us.  
Who is to profit when we begin to 
distinguish the differences we see in each other?  
What does one gain when his eternal soul is 
gambled away on finite, ambiguous choices?  
Who is right or wrong?  Does it matter
when we tend to elevate ourselves 
by diminishing others?  
The word is we should discard our possessions and
follow without question the precepts 
given by Jesus and 
then reinforced by the Spirit. 
This does not have to be literal, but doing so in
the spiritual sense is even more demanding.  
Do we want to be like Him? 
open to everyone with all the problems and 
challenges that come with them and 
act as He wants us to at this time or 
are we going to pause, put on hold 
these things until it is more convenient?  
We ask why, when we know the answer.  
Most are not ready to accept this encounter 
because we do not feel stable, so we are 
willing to wait and in a sense, defy or put aside 
the very teachings we believe in.  
Disputes will continue and 
our confrontation with reality 
will be compromised until the day 
we are ready to throw down
the gauntlet and say no more.  
The sun may shine that day. 
The task, test or trial is just beginning.
There will be others at our side pulling for us
They, too, see the value of the gift

Stanski 
October 25, 2021 ^

 
Sunday is overcast, but uplifting
Through over three-fourths of the year
Still, new and exciting things are
On the threshold of our living
All in all, we have much to do
Like many small communities
We suffer from lack of work
As well as seemingly incurable
Depression and drug use
We are hurting because of 
Complacency and abuse
Slowly we make inroads
With God’s help
For today I pray to stay
Focused on duties, and preparation
Trying to make things better for others
Amen.

Stanski 
October 24, 2021 ^

The shoreline continues
You don’t
Legs and back are sore
And all you have
Is a handful of beach glass 

Stanski
October 24, 2021 ^

Not that I know 
The moment when
I drifted off
Slumber land is peculiar 
Vivid dreams at times
Seeming so real
We visit loved ones
Gone before us
Have adventures
Wake up.  Get up
Check the time
Go back for more
Loveliness or sadness
By the scoopful
Somewhere the exploits end
You wake up
Sometimes in a hurry
Often coughing or
Scratching
Looking for water
Often seeing stars
Or a bright moon
Always fazed by
The reality of
Our insignificance 
Still we come too
Become cognizant 
Know we have purpose
Are driven by it
Make peace with the day
Greet our loved ones
Make our preparations
Feel untangled and
Ready to go
Don’t wish to
Abandon ambition
Before I get going
I am totally aware

Stanski
October 24, 2021 ^

Sometime in the past
The threat of rain
Car pulled over by police
I am passed in a careless way
By a man with a handicap
License Plate
He enters the Church parking lot
In a hurry to meet with God so
He parks in a spot where we 
Were instructed not to park
What is the hurry? 
The Father has His own schedule

Stanski
October 23, 2021 ^