Kurt Philip Behm

Borrowed Time (+2)

Today I turned seventy,

 and the clocks all faintly chimed

 

My hour glass near empty

 to mark the waning time

 

Weeks left on the calendar

 the moments more than days

 

With laughter most important now

 each memory through the haze

 

Today I turned seventy,

 and my dog he seemed to know

 

He whispered to my grandchildren,

 and their love began to flow

 

Bright sunshine through the window,

 but night is sure to come

 

The joy and pain of who I’ve been

 —to live on when I’m gone

 

(Villanova Pennsylvania: December, 2018)

 

 

Try To Be Smart

 

Stop trying to be clever,

  and try to be smart

 

The coyote said

  to the fox

 

The hunters are coming,

  the bounty’s been offered

 

Their traps are all baited

  and boxed

 

Stop trying to be clever,

  and try to be smart

 

The coyote to the fox  

  said again

 

There’s a reason your fur

  is always in season

 

And mine, never coated

   —or skinned

 

(Villanova Pennsylvania: March, 2015)  

         ‘For My Grandchildren’

 

 

Thank You Lord

 

 Thank you for the poetry Lord,

  thank you for the verse

 

Thank you for the words that play

   and on my fields converse

 

Thank you for the feelings

  letting others join in song

 

But thank you most for reaching down

  —and guiding me along

 

(Villanova Pennsylvania: March, 2015)

     From ‘The Book Of Prayers’