The Price of Freedom (Sestina Poem)

Since the winners were announced and mine was not chosen among them, I can now post the poem here. If you want a refresher on what a Sestina poem is, click HERE.

The Price of Freedom

Light over the earth shall fall
casting forth shadows on stone.
The hero will fight for freedom lost,
Where those without would see no hope.
And all we can see is the future red,
Love and peace changed forever.

The sin of war will be forever
Spreading hate to all that fall.
The land stained in deep red,
Covered by the tomb of stone.
All that remains is the idea of hope,
True love and happiness lost.

In the battle, ideals will be lost;
Moral compasses changed forever.
The hero will lean heavily on hope,
with nothing under to brace the fall.
Swords will drop solid as stone,
Rivers flowing a ribbon of red.

Hands stained with innocence red,
to ensure the war is not lost.
Heart of the hero turned to stone
will remain changed forever.
As those around the hero fall,
so does the feeling of hope.

Darkness befalls, engulfing hope;
Covering the hero in red.
Time has expired with the fall
of a warrior now lost.
The fight for freedom rings forever,
Memorials cast in stone.

Families stand by tombs of stone,
Grasping to the idea of hope.
Courage, Sacrifice, and Honor forever,
the flag folded of blue, white and red
Handed to the boy of a father lost.
The truth of freedom is in the fall.

The hero will remain solid as stone, his soul stained red.
Still clinging to the idea of hope, the love once had is lost.
The price of freedom is forever, held high until the fall.

Mortality

Yesterday I received a call from my mother during the day. It is worth noting that my mother and I only speak after work hours or the weekend unless something is wrong. This let's us know that the call is important. When I answered the phone, I knew something happened. My father had passed away.

There is a range of emotions that run through you when something like this happens, but I should explain the situation further. My father and I were not close. Ok, that is probably an understatement. My father left when I was very young and we had seen each other on occasion. He did not have a hand in my life or development and he was not a father figure to me. But that does not stop me from feeling a sense of loss and sorrow.

Over the next few days, family will be traveling and arrangements will be made. I am sure there will be arguments over who gets what and so-and-so is entitled to this. All of that does not matter, but we all have these family members who think about themselves before anyone else. It is sad.

During this time, I will be humbled as I am reminded of my own mortality. The thought of leaving this world, not taking advantage of the time that I have, not spending enough time with my wife and daughter.......I have to use the time I have left wisely.

Going back to school......again

Well, it has happened. I have enrolled in college for my fourth degree. My company is sponsoring a full paid college degree and I could not pass up the deal. They will cover 100% of the tuition, fees, books and materials. I will start on May 6th for my Master of Arts in Organizational Management.

This will definitely cut into my writing time, however, I still believe that I can maintain my deadline for September on the release of my book. I have been making slow progress lately but feel good about where it stands right now. It is interesting to see that some days I can write a lot and others I can barely form a coherent sentence.

The journey continues and the obstacles change. I will not give up and I will succeed. I just might have to sacrifice a little sleep once in a while.

Flash Fiction Topic

While I am waiting to hear the results of the poetry contest that I submitted to last month, I will prepare my submittal to the Flash Fiction Contest. The deadline is April 15th. I have been going around and around on different topics for this. It seems like an easy thing to do, but writing something that inspires emotion and deeper thought within 500 words is not that easy.

I have decided to write about something a little closer to my heart. Something that speaks to me in a way that I cannot help but instill emotion. My story will be from the perspective of a young teenager about to be sentenced for killing two people as a result of texting while driving. This is a serious problem in our society and it is something that I think a lot of people can relate to.

I want people to read this and understand that while they think it is a small thing, the consequences are huge. Not just for the person texting but also the people they can hurt. It is a shame that texting while driving is not enforced with more strength in our country. Many people get into accidents that result in injury or even death.

When I said that this holds a special emotional place in my heart it is because I have seen this first hand. A couple years ago, my wife, a dear friend, and her baby that was less than one year old was struck by a distracted driver of a commercial semi-truck. They were at a standstill in traffic and the truck driver did not see them because he was reaching for his cellphone. I cannot legally go into much more detail than that, but I can say that everyone is alive. God had protected all of them, especially the child.

Unfortunately, I believe this type of thing happens too often in our country. I will write this story, submit it and then publish it. I want everyone to read it and share it with all of their friends. Texting while driving is NOT ok. If you think you are better than everyone else, you are not.

I am not sorry for my strong opinion here and you will not be able to change it. Thank you for reading.

Free Book by Stephanie Brown

A month ago, I posted the release of a book by a friend of mine, Stephanie Brown. She has decided to offer the book for free in order to gain exposure and reviews. If you are interested, you can get a free copy from April 4th through April 8th on Amazon. CLICK HERE.