I Am Not There

Do not stand at my grave and weep;

I am not there. I do not sleep.

I am a thousand winds that blow.

I am the diamond glint on snow.

I am the sun on ripened grain.

I am the gentle Autumn rain.

When you awake in the morning hush,

I am the swift, uplifting rush

Of quiet birds in circling flight.

I am the soft starlight at night.

Do not stand at my grave and cry;

I am not there. I did not die.

 

Parable of the Four-Poster

 

Because she wants to touch him,

she moves away.

Because she wants to talk to him,

she keeps silent.

Because she wants to kiss him,

she turns away

& kisses a man she does not want to kiss.

He watches

thinking she does not want him.

He listens

hearing her silence.

He turns away

thinking her distant

& kisses a girl he does not want to kiss.

They marry each other--

a four-way mistake.

He goes to bed with his wife

thinking of her.

She goes to bed with her husband

thinking of him.

--& all this in a real old-fashioned four-poster bed.

Do they live unhappily ever after?

Of course.

Do they undo their mistakes ever?

Never.

Who is the victim here?

Love is the victim.

Who is the villain?

Love that never dies.

Agrees with everything I say.'

A man walks
into a restaurant with a full-grown ostrich behind him.
The waitress asks them for their orders.

The man says, 'A hamburger, fries and a coke,' and turns to
the ostrich, 'What's yours?'

'I'll have the same,' says the ostrich..

A short time later the waitress returns with the order 'That
will be $9.40 please,' and the man reaches into his pocket
and pulls out the exact change for payment.

The next day, the man and the
ostrich come again and the man says, 'A hamburger, fries
and a coke.'

The ostrich says, 'I'll have the
same.'

Again the man reaches into his
pocket and pays with exact change.

This becomes routine until the two enter again. 'The usual?'
asks the waitress.
'No, this is Friday night,
so I will have a steak, baked potato and a salad,' says
the man.

'Same,' says the
ostrich.

Shortly the waitress brings the
order and says, 'That will be $32.62.'

Once again the man pulls the exact change out of his pocket and
places it on the table.

The waitress
cannot hold back her curiosity any longer. 'Excuse me,
sir. How do you manage to always come up with the exact
change in your pocket every time?'

'Well,'
says the man, 'several years ago I was cleaning the attic
and found an old lamp. When I rubbed it, a Genie appeared
and offered me two wishes.
My first wish was that if I ever had to pay for anything, I would just put
my hand in my pocket and the right amount of money would
always be there....'

'That's brilliant!'
says the waitress. 'Most people would ask for a million
dollars or something, but you'll always be as rich as you
want for as long as you live!'

'That's right. Whether it's a gallon of milk or a Rolls Royce, the
exact money is always there,' says the man..

The waitress asks, 'What's with the
ostrich?'

The man sighs, pauses and answers, 'My second wish was for a
tall chick with a big butt and long legs who agrees with
everything I say.'