All Comments on 'The Last Mile'

A moving poem Mama. Keep on going and the light will appear xxxxx

Thank you darling Pixie, you are so sweet and kind. I am no poet, but I felt the need to write this. Thank you for being kind about it. ❤️

Ecclesiastes 3:1 - or the Byrds/Pete Seeger, if you prefer

To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:

a time to be born and a time to die,

a time to plant and a time to uproot,

a time to kill and a time to heal,

a time to tear down and a time to build,

a time to weep and a time to laugh,

a time to mourn and a time to dance,

a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,

a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,

a time to search and a time to give up,

a time to keep and a time to throw away,

a time to tear and a time to mend,

a time to be silent and a time to speak,

a time to love and a time to hate,

a time for war and a time for peace.

Thank you, Anon I am just not sure what season I am in. I do know that I suck as a poet but thank you.

We are very different people, but you seem to be self-aware and that is becoming more of a commodity, these days. If you haven't read T.S. Eliot's Four Quartets, it is among the best of this sort of thought, and he considered it to be his master work.

In my end is my beginning [...] in my beginning is my end.

Or, if you prefer eastern thought:

Mumonkan – The Gateless Gate

The great path has no gates,

Thousands of roads enter it.

When one passes through this gateless gate

He walks freely between heaven and earth.

Best wishes.

Thank you Anon, clearly you are more learned than I. My feelings came out on paper, so they were not so intense. Holding them in, gives them power. I wish I was not like this, feeling such highs and the horrid lows, but I do. But it is better than feeling nothing at all. It is a cliche but when you get to the end of your rope, tie a not in it and hang on. I suppose I am. Thank you Anon, for you kind words and guidance to other authors efforts.

If we're lucky, age and pain can give one perspective.

Said to Howard Roark in the Fountainhead (Ayn Rand)

“What are you really seeking?'

His reply:

'Freedom – to want nothing, to expect nothing, to depend on nothing.”

That same concept is expressed by most major religions/philosophies:

Christianity and the Seven Deadly Sins.

Buddhism and the Four Noble Truths and Eightfold Path.

...

You might be too young to be familiar with Steppenwolf (the band), but you might like "It's Never too Late."

https://genius.com/Steppenwolf-its-never-too-late-lyrics

And with that, I'll close. Again, best wishes.

I like this.

Simple and thought-provoking.

Our paths are often obscured by brambles and shadows, yet we must continue to move forward.

And where is that dog when we need it?

Anon thank you for reminding me, I was so young but I remember listening to Steppenwolf with Daddy while we worked on my 1963 Triumph Bonneville. I was to young to ride it legally but he didn't care so I didn't. You are right, I have not thought of that song is so long. Daddy was a Korean and Vietnam war vet, I remember him pausing to listen, and it was one of the only times I saw him cry. It did not mean much to me at the time, now that I am a month older than he was when he died from cancer caused by his service exposure, I think I understand what the song means. Thank you for reminding me of it.

Paul, thank you. You are right, no life is ever smooth, and if it is, it is largely unremarkable. We must all remember to do our best and leave the rest to God (as your faith leads you). We must always move forward as best we can, the Black Dog is always there for me, at least, but he seems always at my side these last few weeks. But we can use him as a goad or a guide; it is always our choice.

That was played a lot towards the end of Vietnam... as well as "We gotta get out of this place," Run Through the Jungle, Fortunate Son... a LOT of CCR. I don't know anyone who has been in combat that wants to talk about it; everyone who lives is scarred for life and doing their best to forget all of it. Music and smells trigger memories. Never ask.