My Schedule
I wrote this poem last Saturday during a poetry workshop at the Oregon Christian Writers’ 1-day winter conference. The assignment, if you will, was to write a poem similar to one titled “Holiday Concert” by Maryann Corbett. This is what I came up with. And when I read it to the group, it made me cry.
My Schedule
He needs my help; I don’t have time
I’m too busy with Bible study lessons,
calling all my ladies, leaving voicemails
They don’t want to talk
But he does, he needs me
He needs my help, my love, my advice
But there’s laundry to do, poems to write
Groceries to buy—milk, eggs, more canned goods
just like the ones already in the pantry
I’m just too busy, it never ends
He needs my help; I promise “tomorrow”
or the next day, but there’s a conference
I simply must attend, and a poem to write
and a funeral to drive to in another state,
and then work. Still he waits, patiently
But I wonder, does he know how much
I love him so, I want to help him
to listen to his woes, to encourage him
Once I’m done paying the bills and
doing the taxes and sorting the mail
One day I’ll look back and wonder why
he wasn’t a bigger part of the endless
schedule of less important things
3/10/15 Update: Linked this today for the Poetics prompt at dVerse Poets Pub where Anthony is calling for confessions. This seemed to fit.
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Oh, this one hits close to home. Too often we leave the most important things (and people) for last.
Such a brilliant heartfelt piece Linda – very well penned, you fill me with so much sadness.
Ah.. so true.. when life gets too busy to help those so close.. so truly in need.. love becomes lost.. and life is no longer living..:)
I think back sometimes with some regret that I didn’t spend more quality time with my daughter. Yes, there was always, work, shopping, bills etc. Your poem touched me and I can understand why you cried.
An insightful piece of our strugglewith our priorities! It connected.
what a good poem about how we decide what is important
So easy to push loved ones feelings aside – taking them for granted – wonderful write
I’ve felt this way before and seen this in so many…you really brought it home with the inner monologue…great write and refreshing honesty.
Some priorities just have to be met, and too often the priority of our loved ones is somewhere down the list, a little too far down the list. You can’t go back, either. We live too much in our minds, and not right here, right now.
yes yes, I confess, I do put work over spending time with people who mean a lot to me. And I don’t like making them feel like they’re just after-thoughts, ya know? adulthood I tell ya… but we must make time…
This is such a raw and honest confession and I’m so glad it didn’t end the way I thought it was going to…with it being ‘too late’ for you to make the time in your schedule to give him the help he was asking for and needed. That was my story and I regret that.
Oh this is so very true for many of us, I think. We really do need to think of spending time with people who are important to us instead of doing all kinds of things that are much less important. A very real ‘confession’ indeed.
Quite a confession and such truth. We do indeed need to get our priorities straight and housekeep inside our spirit. Excellent.
Ouch, very much on point with that one – can feel it right down to my bones…
there Is always something else to do…but at some point we have to stop…and do what is important in our lives…
This works on so many levels.. we do not always make the right priorities .. and still the best is if there is that loving need still waiting so make it all right in the end.
def. if we wait until we find the time we will never… it’s good to put the important things first and do all the rest later…
Wow Linda. This one really spoke to me. Thank you for listening to Him and sharing what you hear. God bless you!