Monthly Archives: June 2013

The Passing

Clouds, grey and foreboding hang heavy as my heart.

This unsculpted field of weeds and stone lays before me,

Watered by tears and sorrow,

Sadness of lost love, loss of cherished companions,

Lives sacrificed to the natural or tragic.

It matters not how or why to this pain so intense,

For with each thought of death the abyss broadens,

Taking miniscule pieces of us beyond.

Flowers once vibrant dry and blacken,

Bowing before their marble master in death.

Refreshed for a time, but soon forgotten,

Left to crumble and scatter in the wind.

Not for lack of caring or sympathy, but resign,

No more to pursue this self-torment and pity.

What good does it do for those passed,

Is not life to be walked amongst the living?

Leaving the dead to their eternal rest;

We will reunite with those beyond our touch,

One day, in the place of our faith,

Joined together in a future unknown.

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

 

How Joyous The Day Equality Overcame Hatred

How joyous the day equality overcame hatred,

Though with sadness I ask, “Why was it even necessary?”

We had not…no we have not moved beyond prejudice!

Replacing one group of brothers and sisters with another does not absolve us!

Oh yes! The faces are different, but the name is the same

And this–we call this progress?

Do not think me ungrateful…I am proud,

Though disheartened by so slim a margin,

Yet this is a triumphant day to be sure.

Still–there is so much softening to be done to the callous heart.

“All men are created equal” so proudly declared by so many

Is still, but a dream should you not fit their mould of convention.

Speaking as though preference of the heart is chosen

Shows their narrowness of mind.

It is not choice, it is ingrained by nature!

It is not a flaw nor is it an abomination,

It is who they are, just as you are how you were born.

That which you do not wish to understand should not draw ire,

But instead your silence…with our profound appreciation.

The time of state sanctioned intolerance is in it’s death throes

Though this alone will not change those ignorant of mind.

Yes, this battle will rage on,

For many, long after they are gone,

But know dear friends that bigotry and hate can not prevail

In the presence of humanity and love.

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

 

Authors note: I had been debating whether to write this poem firstly, because I am not a member of the LGBT community and secondly, because I don’t pretend to speak for or have any first hand knowledge of what they have gone through, but then I thought why not, we are all human beings, we all came into this world in the same way and we will all leave it the same way. I have been an observer of this struggle for equality for a very long time and quite frankly found it disgusting that it ever existed in the first place. To add to the distastefulness is the fact that public polling, for the longest time, showed that more than 50% of those polled were in favor of continuing state sanctioned discrimination. In America, we struggled for our freedom from oppression and proudly proclaim in our Declaration of Independence that “All men are created equal” and yet this freedom from oppression and equality only held true if you were a God fearing heterosexual apparently. This ideal was an absolute disgrace. So long as the parties are adults, what right does any human being have to prevent another human being from marrying the one that they truly love? Religious institutions may choose not to marry same sex couples before their altars, but they surely have no standing to prevent them before the law. Of course this is simply one man’s opinion, but I stand behind it wholeheartedly. Congratulations to all of you, it has been a very long time coming and you justly deserve this landmark win.

 

The Battle Rages

A battle rages between enemies within,

Subduing the child since time began,

Struggle for acceptance will soon begin,

At times overdone and out-of-hand.

~

A slow painful process is underway,

Fraught with peril and mines aplenty,

The push to maturity and out of play,

Mistakes oh yes, there are sure to be many.

~

Think back in time to the youth of your day,

Try as you might in with grown-ups to fit,

Seen and not heard was the phrase they would say,

The child that you are in the backseat you will sit.

~

Then in your teens, think you’re woman or man,

You speak as an equal, interrupt, interject,

Try as you might, try as you can,

You want to grow up meaning no disrespect.

~

Natural progression as we try to mature,

Neither a child nor yet an adult,

Please let us in we beg, we implore,

As we try to fit in without insult.

~

This thing called maturity both painful and hard,

We all have been through it ourselves,

Tripped on our tongues and cut on a shard,

They’d understand looking back at themselves.

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

Sanguine Is This Soul Of Mine

Sanguine is this soul of mine,

Joyous in being, breathing, loving, all that this creation has thrown at me,

Be it pleasant or not I am thankful.

Goodness does not come without pain..this has been my experience.

I am not bitter for the anguish I have endured,

The blood I have tasted on my tongue, the bruises worn in honor,

They have strengthened my resolve,

Enhancing that which brings me solace and jubilation.

You are not alone!

This misery, your father and your father’s father before him withstood,

All for a chance to taste euphoria,

Are these not the jewels for which we spend a lifetime in search?

Dear friend, be not weary or disillusioned;

Beyond this torment is bliss– be it in this world or the next.

We, one and all, are pawns in this game,

One whose end is synonymous,

Whether rich or poor, with the victor being…

The human condition

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

 

Meandering Brook

Serene the gentle trickle of meandering brook,

Over pebbles smooth from run of time,

Coolness washes over these tired soles,

Filling lungs with fragrant breath.

How free the feeling of babble-chilled numbness,

Drifting north on travel weary limbs.

Entranced by suns leaf scattered dance,

Diamond shimmers twinkle like neon marquis,

Mesmerizing and comforting and invigorating,

Taking me places far, far away from this time.

So distant the bustle of city street and automobile,

Haze of industry, rubbish strewn waterways,

Man’s inhumanity to man,

The corruption of modernity.

Hearkened back to this simpler place,

Of brooks, pines, the sprawling fern,

Whitetail deer and paddle tailed beaver,

Blue jay and spotted owl,

Amongst these our spirits are freed.

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~