Written today October 25, 2024, to reflect upon the speed with which life can change, and the lack of control we have over external forces, this poem also speaks to how each of us is also a source of change and power. In fact, our words and actions may be what drives a change for others, or in other words, be the cause or contributor to a skip in the heartbeat of others. Live life to the fullest but with love, kindness and grace.
Thump, thump, thump there goes the heart
The beat is steady almost from the start
We know it’s important for there to be living
It’s also the source for kindness and giving
We count on its’ consistent and reliable beat
For there to be breathing and blood to our feet
The heart is the engine which makes us go
Enabling a smooth rocking both to and fro
There is a saying that life can change so fast
It’s only a second that changes future from past
It’s like we close and open eyes in a blink
Or miss a step when we walk and get out of sync
No matter the reason; no matter the change
In a split-second, life can be a little more strange
Maybe its meeting a stranger who changes your life
By becoming your bestie, or even, husband or wife
In a heartbeat a sudden insight arrives with a-ha
Or it may be a critical incident that is the last straw
Maybe it’s a phrase or word that hits like a brick
Changing perspective with the sound of a click
Yet it could be a simple ‘I’m sorry’ or ‘I forgive’
That resolves a problem and further reason to live
The action could be real or a sign from above
Of the heart as our soul and source of our love
You may be that one skip of a heartbeat for a person you touch
By your smile, word or action and living as such
Life in an instant; a reminder to live for today
Live life to its fullest and with sunshine, make hay
Change is a constant and the wind it will blow
Changing directions in ways that we’ll never know
In a heartbeat the wind may be in our back or our face
Our strength comes from living each day with grace