ISN'T LIFE BEAUTIFUL: A friend of mine came to me and asked me to write something to give to his girlfriend. They had been together for quite some time. His girlfriend had decided that they should part ways. He was heartbroken. I wrote him a poem and he gave it to her. They were married shortly thereafter.

    ISN'T LIFE BEAUTIFUL

    I crept upon the silence once
    Only to watch it slip away

    It came down to earth softly
    And I looked upon this wonder

    What I saw was a miracle
    And I wondered of its goodness

    I did not take rightful steps
    And it drifted away from me

    Again I approached with more caution
    I watched while it worked

    I then began to understand its importance
    This was a rare find and I knew it

    Before my very eyes was life
    Wrapped in a very unique package

    But as I gazed in amazement
    It began to look back at me

    How am I to look upon
    As I watched it slowly turn

    Had I prepared to meet this thing
    That life prepared us for

    I then began to realize
    That I am important yet

    Suddenly in a hasty way
    I touched this thing so near

    And to my surprise before me
    Was a grand woman standing still

    And I was forever taken in
    By the rose in both her eyes

    A candle lit that evening
    Was a memory ever more

    For the fire from that torch
    Was passed between us through

    And forgiven in all of past
    Was created one from two

CABIN FEVER: I have watched couples, and sometimes even entire families, get just a little too close in the confines of their homes in wintertime. You would think that after getting rid of all that summer heat, not having to cut the grass and plenty of darkness time to get lots of sleep, that you would relish the fall and winter season. Truth is that the cooped up feeling of being inside and not having a good reason to go outside brings out the pacing tiger in us. One particular couple that I knew had no trouble making it obvious that they both hated winter. She was more athletic than him but both liked running. When it boiled over at some point, they would not speak to each other for hours at a time. Spring was their time but it had to get here first; and until that very day, there was true uneasiness between them.

    CABIN FEVER

    A fight that came to fruition
    Was just between them two

    The bystanders had their bets
    But the match was never true

    For someone who controlled the fight
    With intrusive but mild intentions

    Then spread himself upon the floor
    With smiling unconscious pretensions

    It was later that he recounted how
    He had lost the fight that day

    In his haste out in the early morn
    He forgot one thing: to shave

    It was very rude he thought
    To be seen so well unkempt

    But he only had himself to blame
    When he had overslept

    The fight had long been scheduled
    And he was going to see it done

    Even if the intentions were guessed
    That they were only having fun

    When the first punch landed softly
    His whiskers crossed his mind

    There were many standing round him
    And not one of them was blind

    It was bad enough with no shirt on
    His bones were mighty thin

    But he kept right on thinking
    About the hair tied to his chin

    Some muscle clung to here and there
    But served him through the bout

    A roundhouse cut or two
    Was all that he could mount

    Then a glancing blow did come
    Just a little closer than was planned

    The ground flew up so quickly
    He knew that he was canned

    The final bell rang in sure delight
    When another hand was raised

    The wife had beaten her husband
    In the spirit of the game

    But she apologized forthright
    As she whispered in his ear

    "You ought to get in better shape
    And toughen up, my dear

    "And thank you for the chance
    I know what it can bring

    "Now my fever is much better
    This very first day of spring."

THE DON'T KNOW CAT: Some time ago I was helping to remodel a restaurant in downtown Columbus, Ohio. I looked out the front window and saw what I thought was a homeless man go across the street, sit down on a step, take out a cardboard sign, and set up shop with a tin cup. I had never actually seen a homeless person get into position to beg for money. About two hours later, he was joined by what I thought must have been a fellow homeless person. They traded places and the second man took the cardboard sign and began his routine of looking genuinely in need. The first man walked back across the street and continued to walk toward the back of the restaurant. I hurried to the back of the restaurant and sure enough he went past about fifty yards and got into a car and drove off. Both of them were obviously very lazy and at some point decided to take the easy way out.

    THE DON'T KNOW CAT

    As I sat on the street corner looking hungry and tired
    I was quite supported but nonetheless uninspired.

    None around me knew how unbecoming work could be
    For they put in long hours thinking they were just like me

    I was quite out of sight from the lot of all those cats
    But I bragged about my...