MONDAY THOUGHTS

Stop, and acknowledge the beauty that's around you.

                                    

 

MONDAY THOUGHTS: POETRY PROMPT

There is no suitable replacement 

No qualified substitute 

No reasonable facsimile 

No new torch bearer

What was, will never be again

The body of work, however, remains 

It breathes

It lives

In every era

It needs no embellishment 

No rearranging 

No updating

No tweaking 

It has already been perfected

It is the blueprint that is studied

It has no rival

It seeks no competitor 

Everything else is a mere copy

Everyone else is a mere student 

Curator

Admirer

The teacher is gone

There are no shoes to fill

Only footsteps to follow 

The lessons are here to study

To cherish

To share

Nothing is kept alive by dissecting it

Changing it

Diluting it

Excellence need not be tampered with

Just appreciated

MONDAY THOUGHTS

Be genuine. It’s too much work to be an actor, as you assess and navigate situations, spaces, and places.

Be kind. It costs nothing.

Help and volunteer with zero expectations of accolades, indebtedness, or reciprocity. 

Have pure motives for serving. It shows when you’re only availing yourself to gain access, passes, and perks, and then complain about, and bristle at the actual time commitment required, and work to be done.

Halfway is not going to cut it in spaces and places that strive for excellence.

Don’t opportunistically seek out, or collect people in an effort to feather your own nest. 

Some people can be bought. When it’s clear that you can’t be, the hopeful buyer’s countenance and attitude will sour at the thought of the company they’ve curated.

Be clear about what you did, or did not request. Sometimes, people need to you to justify or cosign what THEY want, or think is best.

The most impressive thing about you CANNOT be your list of contacts. Name dropping pales in comparison to actual, strong working and personal relationships.

The need to be seen, causes many to transform themselves into annoying busybodies, who eventually tire out from the busyness no one asked for. They must be careful, because some people WILL give them something to do just to keep them occupied, and it may not be anywhere near the glamor, or spotlight they crave.

Sometimes, it’s good to write things down. Tangents make a good premise disintegrate. Detours can be confusing and time consuming. If you have to keep reminding people where you’re going, want them to go—or are leading them—maybe you’re the one who needs convincing about the clarity and directness of the path.

You compensate people for working, providing a skill, or delivering a service, not their presence. You do not pay for friendship.

One encounter could very well spark a friendship, but time and experience cement the substance, and mutual understanding of it.

Don’t try to possess or claim people, or block them from establishing relationships with others. 

Be gracious. Don’t be too familiar. It will inspire skepticism, the swift formation of boundaries, and erase any access you may have had. 

What you have, may be opulent, fine, impressive, and expensive, but beware assuming that everyone desires, or is envious of it. Perhaps they’re noticing the obvious toll it takes from you mentally, physically, financially, and spiritually, in order to maintain and keep it. Perhaps they see little, actual enjoyment, and conclude it’s nice, but not worth it. That’s not the envy you secretly want to see in their eyes. It’s pity.

Use the words “friend” and “family” honestly, and not as a deceptive ploy.

Discern authentic hospitality, kindness, and generosity. It comes without strings.

Say “thank you”, and show appreciation when it is warranted. Say a polite “no thank you” as well, otherwise, you’ll be inundated with stuff you neither like, nor want, that reflects the tastes, wishes, and demands of others.

MONDAY THOUGHTS: POETRY PROMPT

I would have no idea, unless you told me

No comment, take, nor opinion to form

Perhaps, if you hadn’t shared it so boldly

Today, you wouldn’t be mad and forlorn

And telling everyone to mind their business 

I’m sure, we were doing that very thing

When you decided we should all be privy

To stuff you should have kept under your wing

So, now I know, but I’m not throwing rocks, here

My own stuff keeps me fully occupied 

But, you can’t dictate how others react to

The things you should have kept locked up inside: 

The things you should have kept behind closed, locked doors 

Or only shared with God, or a good friend

And now, you’re just out here looking quite crazy

And wondering when the ridicule will end 

You should have thought about how things can backfire 

Especially when all is fair game, here

(And, you haven’t exactly been an angel)

Remember, nothing here will disappear 

The second you click “post”, someone is on it

Screenshot-ing, copying, like white on rice

Even if you should promptly delete it

It’s got a new home on their smart device

So, you can’t be upset the world is talking

And you’re the trending topic of the day

It’s your fault for not using more discretion 

It’s your fault that folks have so much to say 

Maybe, if you say less--and skip the clap-back

Resist the urge to answer and defend

Yourself from curious, internet strangers

Your self-inflicted wounds would finally end

MONDAY THOUGHTS: POETRY PROMPT ---GRIEF VULTURES

They think you’re drifting

Out of sorts; without direction

They eye you, like a predator eyes prey

They think you’re crumbling

Without a foundation, or footing

And lie in wait for your sure meltdown, every day

They think you’re crashing

Here they come, with words to prick you

Weird critiques; backhanded insults said in jest

Can’t you discern the shade?

They’ve always had an issue

They'd rather that you were a broken, raving mess

They’ve just been waiting for an opening—an angle

To express what they've been pressed--itching--to say

They need a vulnerable crack; a web to tangle

As if they haven't spun a million, anyway

They think that you’re a weakling

Nice, polite— it’s sickening 

They’ve kept their bitter comments ready in the chamber 

Can’t wait to corner you, and watch your gentle smile fade

Hoping you'll show your other side; collapse in anger

They’re great pretenders

How they sidle up, all friendly 

"Are you okay?", and if you are, they don't believe

And now the masks are off, and they are strangely loose-lipped

Thinking you’ll never, ever sense the snare they weave

They think you’re so wounded 

That tea they bring, is poison

And if you mourn, with them, no empathy is found

They think you’re stupid

That you walk around with blinders, and aren’t lucid

And they can hardly wait to see you hit the ground 

They always questioned the favor you’d been given 

They gossipped, coveted, and undermined for years

Hated that you were nurtured, cherished, and love-driven

(Why all the sudden interest now, with how you're living?)

They hoped, by now, surely, you’d be drowning in tears

They think you’re vulberable

Alone, and without safety

But they labor with great misunderstanding 

You’re not the least bit interested in what they gatekeep

Nor the tangible remains that they're demanding

They think you’re flound'ring 

But you wake, with strength rebounding 

Shoo trouble back to the roost from whence it came 

With a reminder of who secures your healing 

Keeps, guides, directs, and never stops protecting 

Who’s consistently and kindly reassuring 

Who’s just and faithful, sees your lot—and knows your name

vrwC2026

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