In Search for Life?

 

I went in search for life

It was my primary goal,

If only I could find the source

I would never grow old.

 

I suspected there was a cost

And that cost was in wealth,

Once I had the money

I could enhance my health.

 

In neither the twain I found it

In neither health nor wealth,

After I had achieved the latter

I spent it all on health.

 

 

I tried all kinds of remedies

To bring back the health I’d lost

But that was frustratingly futile

Despite the astronomical cost.

 

Maybe it was the environment

So that I also changed

Moving to a healthier location

That I had my lawyer arrange.

 

I tried a dose of religion

And experimented with philosophy,

For a while they seemed to work

But life still eluded me.

 

In the medical parlance

If only I could find the switch,

I’d turned off that life-limiting cell

And my dilemma would be fixed.

 

 

But search and search I did

Yet no such cell was found

And still it vexed me sore

That soon I’d not be around.

 

Medical science is preoccupied

With finding the life source

For if only this could happen

That would be an undying force.

 

Then I turned to God’s Word

That before, I had disregarded

And on the pages of Holy Writ

I was soon to be rewarded.

 

I found the source of life

Or better still, he found me,

And anyone who believes on him

Will live eternally.

 

In St John, the eleventh chapter

Jesus makes this clear

He raised the deceased Lazarus

For Jesus, death held no fear.

 

 

 

For he is the Lord of life

And for him death holds no terror,

A search for life in any other

Must be seen as a grave error.

 

So, if you are searching for life

Look no further, I implore,

Draw from the eternal source

Who has unlimited in store.

 

Jesus is that eternal source

And he offers life to you,

Become a branch on the life-giving vine…

Do it before this day is through.

 

Stewart Russell © August 2019

 

Help!

 

 

Bombarded on every side

Information overload,

Some believable, some not,

Both subtle and bold.

 

A cacophony of noises

Assaulting one’s ear,

All in the name of the science

Yet causing much fear.

 

A proliferation of dissonance

And disequilibrium,

Loss of mental balance

And unreliable cognition.

 

Precariously positioned

Centre of gravity askew

And what to make of it all,

I really wish I knew.

 

A difference of opinion

From experts in the field:

Some apparently genuine

Others driven by greed.

 

How to tell who is who

Beats me for sure,

No wonder some of us say

We can’t take anymore.

 

I’ve heard from doctors

Whom I admire

But their contrasting advice

Says either way is dire.

 

 

There’s a lot we don’t know

The cry of some,

Meanwhile this COVID-19

Keeps us on the run.

 

It’s the worse it has been

From the time it had begun

Though given at one stage

We thought we had won.

 

From single digits a day

To triple figures now

Such that, no retreat no surrender

Becomes a hollow vow.

 

The vaccinated will die

In three years, some say,

But the unvaccinated are dying

Each and every day.

 

Two terms are stated

In almost every COVID death:

Comorbidities and unvaccinated;

We don’t have to guess.

 

One hundred family clusters

So, we now have a plague

Yet, not all of us are behaving

In a responsible way.

 

And given this trajectory

It will only get worse

For only responsible behavior

Can deal with this curse.

 

Adhere to the protocols

I know you know them all,

Together we have to stand

Or divided we will fall.

 

 

Think of another

As you think through all this

And as you do

Put family top of your list.

 

In any case the life you save

May be your own,

Help me help you

In this COVID-19 zone.

 

Help!

 

Stewart Russell © September 27, 2021

 

They Want Our Children Too

 

 

They have captured many adults

But they are still not satisfied,

They want to have our children too

And they will do it in style.

 

They are diligently working their way

Into our children’s classrooms

And under the cover of education

They aim to have them soon.

 

All that outdated hogwash

About this present binary gender

Will be a thing of the past quite soon

And just barely remembered...

For procreation purposes only

Until that is needed no more,

With advancing medical science

There will be much more in store.

 

Our children are their future

They must be ready for the change,

Hence, the subtle manipulation

So at first it won’t seem strange.

 

Like the contented frogs

That had eventually died

When the water was gradually heated

And they met their demised.

 

The container was left uncovered

They could easily jump out,

But they were happy in the water

This was better than any drought.

 

The frogs never really noticed

That the water was getting hot

And when it reached its boiling point,

They were all cooked in the pot.

 

 

This is a serious lesson for parents

And to responsible adults too,

They are coming for your children

Do not let them deceive you.

 

Monitor your children closely

Show them that you care,

Tell them that you love them

And keep them in constant prayer.

 

Be their trusted confidant

Be the support on which they can lean,

Show them that God and you and them

Will always be a winning team.

 

Don’t take this admonition lightly

They want our children too,

We must do everything in our power

To prevent this from coming true.

Satan’s agents are near and far

They are at home, at church, at school,

Do not let him catch you unaware

Please, do not become his tool.

 

Be aware of Satan’s enticements

He is a specialist in traps and snares,

Do not try to fight him on your own

God is the only one he fears.

 

Stewart Russell © October 2019

 

No Longer Next Year

 

 

2021 was next year

Now, it is no longer that

And anyone who can know

Knows this is a fact.

 

The outlook was bleak

Even for Barbados

That was handling COVID-19

Better than most.

 

It’s no longer the outlook

It is the current reality

And quite horrid, I must add

With our cases: a sudden 643.

 

And counting… more than likely

As we await results,

And what of the many expert opinions?

Therein is the tumult.

 

 

What I do know I will tell you

And this is the startling fact!

The fallout from COVID is no hoax

And there is no denying that.

 

I am not sure how it started

But it is clearly here

And it is hurting every nation

Ours and elsewhere.

 

The bus crawl was an accident

Just waiting to occur

Like so many other situations

To which I can refer.

 

Because we were doing well

People dropped their guard

And now we have this spike

That has struck us real hard. 

 

 

In just a few days

We have almost double our cases

And I have a sneaky suspicion

It was those mask-less faces.

 

Mystery surrounds the virus

And the vaccines as well

And “we are following the science,”

I hear the authorities tell.

 

What puzzles me, though,

Are the many different views

That all come from the same science…

Tell me, which ones are true?

 

What started in 2019

Survived all of 2020

And here at the beginning of 2021

Is still having a spree.

 

 

We were all hoping that 2021

Would bring us some light

Of the end of this COVID-19 tunnel

And the end of this fight.

 

Instead we have a new variant

And apparently not just one

And it appears it will be a long while

Before COVID-19 is gone.

 

Countries are on lockdown

For yet one more time

And this horrid COVID-19 pandemic

Is optimum on our mind.

 

 

A long road lies ahead of us

Filled with a myriad uncertainties

And the only constant it appears

Is this COVID-19 mystery.

 

2021 is no longer next year

It is now with us and full of fear,

Fear of a dreaded virus, of toil and care

With no end in sight or even near.

 

Meanwhile, adhere to the protocols

And protect yourself!

These simple bahaviours are the surest way

To stop community spread.

 

Stewart Russell © January 5, 2021