Tag Archives: compassion

Silence

Silence does not mean I don’t care.

Perhaps I’m stifling a self-righteous opinion

Or maybe I’m just listening like a good friend does.

I don’t have all the answers nor are any required.

Your questions are rhetorical,

Simply statements to self,

You already know the answers.

It isn’t my place to judge,

Only to offer advice when asked for it,

My judgemental days are over.

I don’t walk in your shoes,

I don’t feel what you feel,

I haven’t lived your life,

Struggled your struggles,

Traveled your rutted path.

Instead I offer my silence

…As a show of love and support.

 

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

 

What is the Cost

What is the cost of kindness, love, compassion,

Nothing and everything I propose.

No monetary value do they hold.

They cannot be bought or sold as livestock.

They are invisible, but for their gestures.

This by no means diminishes their value.

Priceless are they above the grandest diamond,

But do not be fooled,

They most surely take ravenously as does the thief.

Taking stress and casting it into the wind,

Taking hate and smothering it until breathless,

Taking selfishness and warming it with empathy.

Nothing but good can come of these

Yet we find them most difficult to freely offer.

How much improved would this world be,

For all that we sow we reap

Either in this life or the next.

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

 

Tears Are Emotion (Tanka)

Tears are emotion
Not defined by our gender
They are just human
There is no shame in crying
Unless you withhold the rain
~
~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

A Winter Wind Blows (Haiku)

A winter wind blows
Across the barren landscape
~ Victim to the cold
.
~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

Our Freedom of Speech (Tanka)

Our freedom of speech
Guaranteed since inception
Undeniable
But just because we can speak
Doesn’t always mean we should
.
~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

Humanity Lost (Haiku)

Humanity lost
When a blind eye can be turned
~ Left with a cold heart
.
~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

Will I…

Were I cast out to sea, adrift…in a small boat,

Floating…gliding up and down over diamond-head swells;

Bathing under a star soaked sky,

Will I be seen by God?

~

Were I crawling, dirty…clothes worn ragged,

Parched…flesh burning, blistered and bleeding;

Boiled under a hellish sun,

Will I be saved by God?

~

Were I bedridden, covered in sores…begging for death,

Terminal…no hope, living in utter despair;

A slave to this mortal body,

Will I be spared by God?

~

Were I to pass…peacefully or in torment,

Eyes closed…draped in white as I was at birth;

No more a victim to my earthly form,

Will I be welcomed by God?

~

For all the wrongs I’ve done, all the sins I have notched,

The list is long, written in stone, my autobiography;

My claim on humanity not unlike others,

Will I be forgiven by God?

~

Will I be seen…

Will I be saved…

Will I be spared…

Will I be welcomed…

Will I be forgiven…

By God?

.

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

For You

I bleed for you,

When you cry I cry for you,

Tears that stain my soul,

Not out of sympathy alone,

Not out of pity,

Not out of martyrdom,

But out of purest love

True and genuine.

Ingrained like roots buried deep,

Twisting, wrapping around my bones;

Without them I would starve,

Without you I would wither,

An impossibility.

We are sown of perfect seed;

Ordained by the universe,

Bound by what cannot be bought,

It must be grown,

Watered,

Nourished,

Nurtured to maturity,

Protected until the end of time–

I am yours.

~

By: Dominic R. DiFrancesco

 

Humanity – A Tanka

Image Credit: flickr.com

Image Credit: flickr.com

Material wealth

Blinding to what surrounds you

Swallows compassion

If permitted to consume

And supplant humanity

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

Skinned Knees

Skinned knees

Blood red

Torn pants

Frayed rope belt

Too big for frail frame

~

Nails caked

Hands shake

Dirty hands

Utensils for eating

Food is scarce

~

Shirt ragged

Sleeves ripped

Buttons missing

Better than nothing

Shopped from trash

~

Face leather

Beard unshaven

Hair matted

No place to shower

Embarrassed by odor

~

Scrap cardboard

Help Me Please

Eyes pleading

Can you spare a dime

Will you spare a dollar

~

Looking away

He’s invisible

Just a bum

Remember his knees

He wounds like us

~

You pray to God

Recite His passages

Holier than thou

Looking down your nose

You detestable hypocrite

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~