I Saw God Today.... For My Pal Smoky

I saw God today, on a mountain high,
As the wind blew through my hair.
I saw God today in the clear blue sky,
I felt small and humble there.

I saw God today, in the desert sands,
As the Joshua Trees reached for the sky.
I saw God today in the arid sands,
And heard the coyotes mournful cries.

I saw God today in the desert sun,
And in the desert willow bells.
I saw God today, just one on one,
In beautiful stones and ancient sea shells.

I saw God today and he saw me,
I could reach out and touch his face.
I saw God in that vast dry sea,
And now my soul is full of grace.

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poem by Juan Olivarez
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The Fairy Castle

There's a fairy castle, in my backyard,
It's spires reaching upward, towards the sky.
It's blue green spines pointy and hard,
One little stab will make you want to cry.

It stretches fifteen feet, into the air,
Majestic in the setting sun.
A king of the desert noble and fair,
An impenetrable fortress, to all but one.

Up in the topmost spires a thrush,
Has made her simple home.
In between the stems that squeeze and crush,
On her nest she's sitting all alone.

Without a worry in the world she rests,
And in her bed she sings and nestles.
While her mate dozes near the nest,
Happy within, their fairy castle.

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poem by Juan Olivarez
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Texas Indigo Snake

Walking through the chapparral,
A loud rattle assailed my ears.
I stopped in my tracks,
Trembling in my boots.
There she was,
Coiled up,
Under the big colima.
Six feet of,
Slow painful death.
A Western Diamondback.
She was ready,
To deliver her punch,
I had strayed too close.

But it was not to be.
There was a loud,
Rustling of twigs, and leaves,
A cloud of dust,
And a gigantic, black serpent,
Engulfed the rattler.

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poem by Juan Olivarez
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The Little Old School Room

In a little old school room,
In that old country school.
Where we started to bloom,
With the Golden Rule.

That was the place for our very best times,
Learning to read, reciting nursery rhymes.
That little old school room way in the back,
In the morning we'd get there, by crossing the tracks.

Fixing it up for Halloween,
Black cats, pumpkins, witches, and hay.
The most wonderful room I'd ever seen.
We couldn't wait for that special day.

Making masks from paper bags,
Getting up a party for the fourth grade class.
All dressed up in paint and rags,
Drawing little ghosts on the window glass.

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poem by Juan Olivarez
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The Cordell

She stands alone,
In the autumn rain.
Watching her life walk away.

The soft thud of,
Slowly disappearing dreams,
On the street.

Dreams muffled,
By the autumn rain.
Slowly fading in the twilight.

He won't look back,
There is something in his eye.
The autumn rain.

A voice deep down says,
Turn around you fool.
As the autumn rain falls.

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poem by Juan Olivarez
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Mass Suicide

A swarm of africanized honey bees,
Decided to commit suicide,
Because their queen told them,
It would be the fastest way to heaven,
And they would be enlightened.

Quickly, a scout found the source,
For their demise, and returned to the queen,
With the news, who instantly ordered,
All drones, breeding males, and all ladies,
In waiting, to follow her.

Swarming in the sky they located the subject,
Of their ignominious ending and all proceeded,
To vent their rage upon the man walking along.
Once only once they each stung him,
And fell writhing to the ground.

The man was stung several hundred times,
And unwittingly had become the last casualty,

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poem by Juan Olivarez
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The Croaking Toad And The Leopard Frog

The croaking toad and the leopard frog,
Were drinking beer on a hollow log.
And the croaking toad said, you're my best bud,
Man you can really hold your suds.

And the leopard frog replied in kind,
Another friend like you, I couldn't find.
You're my best friend when skies are grey,
You're by my side come what may.

I'd rather drink my beer with you,
Than catch blue bottles the whole day through.
Let's drink one more to the breaking dawn,
While we listen quietly to the crickets song.

But the croaking toad said I must go,
I'm very sleepy and the cock just crowed.
I'll see you tonight for a cold one or two,
I really love this black swamp brew.

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poem by Juan Olivarez
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Jacaranda

Purple majesty framed in the sky,
Like a magnificent painted cloud.
There is not one that can deny,
Your beauty as you stand so proud.

There is no tree that can compare,
And few there are that can keep in stride.
Your'e Helen of Troy, a beauty so rare,
Blushing purple, a most lovely bride.

Royal thou art, and I can attest,
Thine purple beauty is so unique.
Head and shoulders above the rest,
Only a fool would dare critique.

Thine beauty makes the birds entone,
While in thy shade, they do repose.
The most beautiful, harmonius, heartfelt songs,
Tiny feathered poets, reciting prose.

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poem by Juan Olivarez
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Honor And Courage

In Japan, they write on rice paper,
In America, we write on the sides of buildings.
In Japan they honor their elders,
In America, we rob them on buses,
And abuse them.
In Japan there is great love for their country.
In America, people are refusing to stand,
For the national anthem.
In Japan, men are volunteering to die,
Without a second thought,
To give up their lives,
To save their fellow citizens.
Oh yes, you'll say, the Japanese are great,
At dying, at suicide missions.
But is that the point?
Shouldn't the point be,
The Japanese love their homeland,
The Japanese love their own people,
The Japanese love their way of life,
The Japanese love their traditions,

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poem by Juan Olivarez
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Underneath The Jacaranda Tree

On a windy day, I saw her standing there,
Underneath the jacaranda tree.
With purple blossoms in her hair,
Amidst a purple sea.

The purple reflected in her eyes,
As the clouds went rolling by.
I swear I could hear the angels cries,
From heaven's throne on high.

Underneath the jacaranda tree,
A little fountain ran.
With crystal waters running pure and free,
The purest in the land.

In the fountain she dipped her hand,
In crystal waters cold and fine.
And let water drip on the sugar white sands,
Long ago when she was mine.

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poem by Juan Olivarez
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