Qualifying questions, remedial response.
Knowledge of situations often haunt.
What we know or have been told.
We tell ourselves we just don’t know.
Answers formed by thoughts untold.
Rumour and misinformation often sold.
Conspiracy theories tend to rule the day.
Bare truth and logic will get in the way.
04/22/2024 j.g.l.
Current Thoughts
Open your mouth, let words
bypass lips. Converse consciously
to brethren or bystanders.
Reach out to
close friends gone amiss.
Be not afraid, not now, of
articulating current thoughts and
accomplishments of which
you are proud, and even your sins
(for we have all owned a few)
might seem far less tragic
from an altered point of view.
Give fresh voice
to insecurities and anxieties hidden
within your self, speak highly of
those dusty dreams
languishing on a shelf.
Past sullen moments cast a
lengthy shadow, short-term
expectations tend to dull down
long-term possibilities.
Talk freely around all you want,
or hope, or desire to be.
Each intention will resonate
with those who wholly believe.
Understanding takes effort.
© 2024 j.g. lewis
April 18th is Poem in Your Pocket Day
a day to celebrate poetry by selecting a poem,
carrying it in your pocket, and sharing with the
friends and strangers who cross your path.
Share a poem wherever the day takes you, as you
would share a smile, a gesture, or your kindness.
Sharing is caring.
April is Poetry Month
take a poem to lunch
Our paths shift, circumstance and
attitude shaping our trajectory.
The company we keep alters both
our outlook and destination.
We are where we are
mainly because of who we are
and whom we are with.
04/16/2024 j.g.l.
I'm like a pencil;
sometimes sharp,
most days
well-rounded,
other times
dull or
occasionally
broken.
Still I write.
j.g. lewis
is a writer/photographer in Toronto.
Classical music is played around and in Toronto’s Dundas Square. Off hours, or through the night, the strains of an orchestra or piano and violin can be heard from under the eaves.
The same tactic was used decades ago at 7-11 stores to try and stop kids from congregating outside its stores; like the music of Beethoven, Bach or Rachmaninoff was so repulsive it would scare them away.
Like, who thought of that?
When did classical music become viewed as so tasteless or threatening?
Now, I get it; classical music is not everyone’s cup of tea, but then neither is country, or the blues, jazz, or hip-hop.
Classical music, having been around the longest, should probably have greater respect than it does in the greater population.
Yes, I enjoy classical music, and I have since I developed a ear for it as a teenager. As the years went on I listened more, read more, and experienced more. Now I still enjoy rock music (from punk to pop); in fact I listen, primarily, to rock and roll. Yet, I have come to know how classical will fit my moods, or soothe my senses.
I have, through trial and error, developed a taste for a wide range of classical music.
I’ve been reading a book through the year that asks people to take another look at classical music. In Playlist, James Rhodes guides you through The Rebels And Revolutionaries of Sound.
It’s an honest, graphically stimulating book that features the composers, the eras and the language of music, spelled out in an entertaining format.
Rhodes has also included “My Ultimate Playlist” that can be accessed on Spotify and with the text, will open your ear to the magic of the music.
“So, this is my plea; give this music a chance,” Rhodes writes in the introduction, an invitation to read and listen, and then (if you wish) never listen to it again.
“But maybe, just maybe, it’ll blow your mind and improve your life a little bit,” Rhodes adds.
Playlist is a good read, and a great listen.
08/23/2020 j.g.l.
I’m like a pencil;
sometimes sharp,
most days
well-rounded,
other times
dull or
occasionally
broken.
Still I write.
j.g. lewis
is a writer/photographer in Toronto.