Oliver Manning, my patient was short in stature but had a giant heart and mind. I took car of this wonderful man and his wife for many years. Before age took over his memory, he wrote many instructive poems that I often heard him recite. As you read his poetry, I ask you to “listen to the elders.”
FEELING IMPORTANT
Sometimes when you are feeling
important,
Sometimes when your ego’s in
bloom,
Sometimes when you take it for
granted,
That you are the best qualified in
the room.
Sometimes when you feel that
your going will leave an
unfillable hole,
Just follow this simple
instruction,
and see how it humbles the soul.
Take a bucket, fill it with water,
Put you hand in it, up to the
wrist,
Pull it out and the hole that
remaineth,
will give you an idea of how
much you’ll be missed.
You may splash all you please as
you enter,
You may stir up the water
galore,
But stop, and you will see in a
moment,
That it looks the same as
before.
The moral of this quaint example is to do the best that you can, think well of yourself, but remember: There is no indispensable man or woman! I hope you get the message, for I surely did.
When Trouble Comes and Things Go Wrong
Let us go quietly to God
when trouble comes to us.
Let us never stop to whimper
or complain and fret and fuss
Let us hide “our thorns” in
“roses”
and our sighs in “golden song”
And our “crosses” in a “crown
of smiles”
whenever things go wrong.
For no one can really help us
as our troubles we bemoan.
For comfort, help and inner
peace
must come from God alone
So do not tell your neighbor,
your companion or your friend
In the hope that they can help
you
bring your troubles to an end
For they, too, have their
problems,
they are burdened just like
you,
So take your cross to Jesus
and He will see you through
And waste no time in crying
on the shoulders of a friend
But go directly to the Lord
for on Him you can depend
For there’s absolutely nothing
that His mighty hand can’t do
And He never is too busy
to help and comfort you.
As you know, God is the great physician, I hope that this wisdom will enrich your life as it has mine!
All Mixed Up
Just a line to say I’m living
That I’m not among the dead
Tho’ I’m getting more forgetful
And more mixed up in my
head.
For sometimes I can’t
remember
When I stand at the foot of the
stairs,
If I must go up for something
or I’ve just come down from
there.
And before the “fridge” so
Often
My mind is filled with doubt,
Have I just put food away or
Have I come to take it out?
And there are times when it is
dark out
With my nightcap on my head
I don’t know if I’m retiring
or just getting out of bed.
So, if it’s my turn to write you
There is no need for getting
sore.
I may think that I have
written
And I don’t want to be a bore.
So, remember, I do love you
And I wish that you were
here
But now it’s nearly mail time
so,
I must say “Good-bye dear,”
There I stood beside the mail
box
With a face so very red-
Instead of mailing your letter
I have opened it instead!
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