Tag Archives: destruction

Is Being “Father” Enough

Is being “Father” enough?

Looking into the face of the son, I’m not sure who I see;

Some of me, some of his mother,

But these are just physical traits.

He has lived a life far different from my own,

Seen and done things that I have never seen or done

Lived the horrors of war,

Witnessed the worst of mankind,

Traveled through the world with a bullseye on his back.

How could this not demand change,

A change that I will never understand?

Me…I’ve sat in my easy chair;

Warm, dry, safe,

Worrying for his safety,

Praying for him to come home.

I read the ticker at the bottom of the screen

Announcing without emotion those that would not return;

Thankful for the call that never came.

Is being “Father” enough?

I cannot alter what was,

Cannot erase what he has seen,

Cannot live his life.

We seem to have less in common these days,

Though I am certain that this is more my problem than his.

Is being “Father” enough?

I suppose that it will have to be.

.

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

 

She Blew In Raging (Shakespearean Sonnet)

She blew in raging and tearing at the soul;

A wake of rubble, blood, sweat and tears,

The nation gave to again make it whole,

To still their brothers and sisters fears

Crane and hoe and muscle revived

What Sandy smashed and to the sea let go,

But yet through the horror, hope survived,

Resilience and courage of spirit showed.

Seaside Heights and Park unknown

For an instant became a boardwalk show;

Notoriety and fame unwanted have grown,

Little seashore hamlets we’ve come to know.

The Devil’s flame of hell has retorn,

Again from tragedy it shall be reborn.

.

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

 

Biblical Floods Came – A Tanka

Biblical floods came

Washing away towns and lives

Cut off from the world

And still it won’t be over

Even after the rains end

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

 

Storms Rage – A Tanka

Storms rage with fury

Devastating destruction

Tearing limb-from-limb

Pain not invoked by nature

But by a tormented soul

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

Greatest Rewards – A Tanka

Life’s greatest rewards

Friendship, love, marriage, children

So easily lost

Succumbing to deadly sin

Destroys all that we treasure

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

Mother’s Wild Rage – A Haiku

Image Credit: murphyillustration.com

Image Credit: murphyillustration.com

Mother’s wild rage

Unmerciful destruction

Wind, fire and rain

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

Otherworldly – A Tanka (In honor of the tornado victims)

Otherworldly

The skies swallow up heaven

Leaving destruction

Wizard of Oz…a movie

This is Moore, Oklahoma

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

Beauty Surrounds

Beauty surrounds,

If we only take time to observe.

Caught in the trap of modernity,

Should we not exalt these wonders,

For the sanctity of nature,

Is most breathtaking to behold.

Our towering buildings, bridges, fountains, sculptures,

All the great works of the ages do not compare.

Man’s achievements are but specks,

Mere blemishes woven into this worldly fabric.

The Grand Canyon, Niagara Falls, the giant redwoods,

the mighty Mississippi, the Rocky Mountains,

Overshadow anything man’s simple mind could envision.

Yet through our mortal determination

We destroy the masterpiece that sustains us.

Let us slow down…

Take a moment to appreciate what surrounds us

Before we further damage this gift we have been given

Leaving nothing but ugliness and regret

To those that will follow.

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

Hostile Nature

pollution

Image credit – thewaterq.com

The exploit of nature

Indiscriminate as if it has no consequence

Acting as master as if it were all under control

When all is well, you belittle the tree huggers

Crucifying compassion and caution as a gauntlet to progress and profit

Until progress yields to disaster

Igniting the public relations machine

Blame is never placed with self but on others

Minimizing damage to the image is paramount

The environment expendable

Poisoned water, tarballs, dead zones

Headlines today soon to be forgotten by the gluttonous masses

Creatures of habit bribed by unscrupulous liars

Clearly the cleanliness of air and water are of only temporary concern

Instant gratification is worth sacrificing the progeny

These behemoths think nothing of the living world

It is here to be conquered at any cost

To be stripped bare of the resources it has so long protected

Coal, oil, gas

Eighteenth century fossils lobbied to buy the people’s government

Elected officeholders answerable to none

These scoundrels throw our prospects to the wolves

Tearing at the plunder as if a rabid pack

The citizenry kept appeased by hollow promises lays in coma

Promised to reap the rewards of the spoils

But at what loss must the gain aspire

~~ D. R. DiFrancesco ~~

I Should Have Listened

By D. R. DiFrancesco

~~~~

~~~~

They are only things,

Temporary and replaceable trinkets,

Their loss, of course stings,

But at the time you could not think it.

 ~~

They asked you to leave and not look back,

Refusing, you took your life in your hands,

While Sandy bore down on your homes and your shacks.

Threatening to bury you in water and sand.

 ~~

Stubborn you claim, “ I’ve been through this before”,

I made it once, I made twice, I can make it again,

But Sandy is not like any of those other girls they implore,

She’s reckless, she’s deadly, she’s a ten out of ten.

 ~~

You know better than they do,

She can’t take what is yours,

Until the trees fell and the waves grew,

You tried to batten your windows and doors.

 ~~

The winds whipped and the rains fell,

Now your house has gone dark,

There’s no one to call, there’s no one to tell,

A loud bang and the sky is lit up by a transformers spark.

 ~~

A tear falls and your heart begins to race,

Maybe Sandy isn’t like any of the other girls I knew,

I wasn’t afraid of Irene or Katrina I just laughed in their face,

I’m beginning to think that this one played me for the fool.

 ~~

You called for help, but your cries go unheeded,

They told you to get out, you just wouldn’t listen,

Left to ride out the storm ‘til the oceans receded,

Under stress you tremble and sweat begins to glisten.

 ~~

A horrible crash and the doors turn to splinter,

Windows explode shattered glass all around,

Nowhere to hide as the waves rush to enter,

Trapped with no chance to reach higher ground.

 ~~

You struggle to hang on not to drift out to sea,

As your walls crumble down like paper mache,

The surge sucks you out as you lunge for a tree,

Praying to God to live another day.

 ~~

Your tired and weak as your hold begins to slip,

Life flashes like a movie in your minds eye,

Kicking and straining not to lose your wet grip,

Hoping against hope that its not time to die.

 ~~

But your fate it was sealed in that moment of haste,

You had your chance given more than should have been needed,

The lose of your life such a sad and immoral waste,

All for disregard of a message that should have been heeded.

 ~~

We now mourn your loss as a tragedy unforgiving,

At the hands of a lady with the devil in her soul,

You could have been one to go on in life living,

Instead you’re another uptick in Sandy’s death toll.

 ~~

You’re a sad reminder of nature’s great strength,

To be feared and respected in all of it’s glory,

Awesome and powerful while held at arms length,

May your loss be our lesson in this tragic storm story.

Sadly, there are those that do not have an appropriate respect for the power of nature.  Too often these individuals refuse to heed the warnings given to them and the result is not just the loss of their personal property, but the loss of their lives.

I truly mourn those who perished as a result of Hurricane Sandy and hope that somehow those that lost their lives due to their blatant disregard of the warnings serve as a lesson to those who may contemplate similar actions in the future.

I honestly believe that there are no material possessions in this world worth sacrificing ones life for.   I hope and pray for a speedy recovery and return to normalcy for those who are suffering from the wrath of Sandy.  My heart goes out to you all.