Travelling Memoirs - Pearl Valley

A week ago, my friends and I went on a trip to a nature spot, Muthyala Maduvu aka Pearl Valley, which is reachable via Bannerghatta Road. I recorded my thoughts in a poem:

Seeking nature's paradise we set out,
In the wee hours of a lovely Sunday,
Leaving the noise and buzz behind,
Taking some time off the grind.

Lazy city roads on a holiday morn,
Leaving behind lane and corner,
Blessing songs fill the ear,
As praise and thanks fill the heart.

It's the Sunday after Easter,
The feast of Divine Mercy,
Praying for release of forgiveness,
That our lives may be whole.

For while we free our bodies and minds,
Enjoying the beauty of creation,
We may enjoy freedom of spirit,
Healing of our inner being.

You created us, Lord, for Thee,
And in our hearts, we seek joy,
Joy that never goes out,
In the flame of your limitless love.

As we gaze on streams flowing,
Amid idyllic sounds of birds calling,
Life takes a breath, stands still,
Serenity of Your creation, Father.

Beautiful and without compare,
Your poem of creation, Father,
Your endless song surrounds us,
Can't we live this dream forever?

Nay son, this is just my creation,
My gift for your short sojourn,
But end it must and end it will,
For a new heaven and earth awaits.

Aye, I created you for eternity,
Your soul to outlast this earth,
Your earthly sojourn a cradle,
Before you're born to celestial courts.

Holy Father, sweeter than this earth,
Is to listen to Your timeless voice,
Sweeter than the songbirds,
Clearer than the pearly water.

We tarry near the gushing thread,
Of droplets turning pearly white,
Silvery streaks of sheer delight,
We taste the beauty You created.

Yet deep within we know that this,
Sweet reverie will but pass away,
Like all things of this earth,
And our very lives, breaths, heartbeats.

As we return to our grind,
There in our daily ordinary lives,
We know that this is the place,
You make the finest pearls of creation.

For our souls, Lord, in Your image,
Our deepest longing needs Your fire,
Fashioned and revealed on the Last Day,
We will be made Your pearls of delight.

Hail King of Glory

Here's a poem of thanksgiving to Jesus I wrote during the Christmas of 2008:

The Holy King of all creation,
Leaving the halls of unspeakable glory,
With a heart of unspeakable goodness,
Comes to be born among us.

The High King, great and glorious,
What shall I play for Him?
The angels sing and glorify Him,
They blow trumpets in His royal courts.

He comes bringing great treasure.
A treasure that is not diminished by sharing.
The treasure of His golden heart.
The Master, humble and meek.

What sweetness awaits those who buy
From Him the unspeakable treasures,
The riches He has to offer,
Worth exchanging everything I possess.

Jesus is the King of Love,
For He sacrificed all for me.
How great my joy to sing,
To thank and praise Him unceasingly.

You, Lord are my greatest encourager.
Your words gladden my heart.
With pure unbounded joy,
A blessing in time of drought.

You that bled and died for me,
Who shed Your last drop of blood,
A most pure and holy blood
A price like no other.

For me, a sinner with bleak future,
Crushed by the sorrow I deserve for my sin.
You paid my price in full, my Saviour!
And rescued me from the jaws of death.

For the wages of sin is death,
But You, Innocent, suffered for me.
Can I not bear Your standard, my King!
Can I not fight the good fight today!

Hail King of glory exalted above,
Praised and blessed who gave me Your Mother,
To be Mother for me and for all,
Hail King of immeasurable greatness!

Christ my Light

Living in this world is a constant journey.
There are problems you thought were not there.
There is a place you do not know has thorns too.
Even after prayer and faith, the works of God,

There are burnt down embers of a beautiful forest.
That forest is our lives, sweet and true,
But the burning embers is the reality of life,
And the offering of our hands before our Lord.

But will we offer it to our precious Savior,
Who can change it and make it good?
Who can cleanse it for the better?
Who can take all the darkness away?

How long can a man bear a cross, I ask.
But how foolish am I when in false expectation,
I expect roses coming now, when my Lord is there,
Walking every step with me.

He it is who bears my cross each day,
To carry pain and remorse and huge burdens,
To have gone into the depths of sin and shame,
By coming here to us and conquering all.

Yes, my all-­conquering Savior is the light now,
My solace and peace and comfort and faith,
Each day he looks at me like he did the Cyrenian,
He's the one who bears the weight of my heart.

Transformed

What happens when we meet someone special? What if that person can enter into our hearts and minds? What if that special one was God? The following poem is a dialogue with Christ, in gratitude for His gift of His Body and Blood:

My tears fill the vale below,
Tears, not of grief, but of joy!
Like water that flowed from You,
From your side, from your heart.

You have spoken to your servant, Lord,
My soul rejoiced in thanks and praise!
For that great sacrifice you made,
On your amazing cross!

I feel your blood and water flow, sweet Jesus,
I see your peaceful face that radiates!
A heart forgiven, bathed in love,
O it flows like a waterfall, a torrent.

O Lord, I was born of my mother here,
Her flesh and blood in me,
But when you enter in, dear Lord,
I am transformed, yes transformed!

My flesh cleansed by you perfect body,
My blood sanctified by yours, precious,
My hands, feet, face, eyes, organs,
My heart, soul, mind and spirit.

What more can I ask, Lord?
You have filled me up!!

Inexpressible gratitude

Holy Lord, You created me in love.
Purest God, You gave me my life.
Perfect Father, You let me live,
Despite knowing all my waywardness.

The years behind are not perfect,
The murky colours of unfaithfulness,
So all mankind is lost unless,
We throw away scales and measures.

Christ, You came to live with me,
Listen and bear all my guilt,
Through perfect love offer Divine grace,
Merited by Your perfect sacrifice.

Should I try to show my thanks?
Should I sing and lift my voice?
Rather, I will surrender to You,
And make my life a song of praise.

Life of strife and after

Man, on his own, is a hopeless slave.
That man, who did not know,
That there was an answer to his life,
His empty aimless, destructive life.

That man who thought
That there was gain in entertainment
Seeking to fill a wounded spirit
With pleasures that pass and kill

But the truth always dawned
And how painful that dawn,
When all ended in darkness,
In a hollow emptiness.

What he lacked, he knew not,
In his life, to see soul soup,
True strong manna to revive
A flagging and aching spirit.

Some men there are who knew
That they lacked, yes lacked.
In all the wealth and distractions,
They yet knew they needed it.

But what they needed how were they to know?
Go to a lonely place and meditate?
Or pray together in unison?
Follow leaders who say the truth about sin.

And knowing their frailty, they moan,
Knowing this burden, they strive,
To live to do all they can,
Releasing their pangs and chains.

For man is bound until he meets,
The grace that is most perfect.
So lost and forlorn is he until,
He finds that for which he was created.

That is why we preach the Gospel,
Men over the centuries with all passion
Overcoming tempest, storm and wind,
Snake poison, burning oil, the noose of condemnation.

All while having received,
Grace upon grace, blessing upon blessing,
The thing that was most precious,
The living God who redeems us.

Said the Christ, the light of life,
That he who has ears will hear,
He who listens will understand,
Throw the grain to all people.

So that before all shall perish,
Before the fading of our poor lives,
We may find the reason to live,
And find our being and purpose.

Man with Christ, is victorious,
Having the armor of God for ever,
To shield him and help him bear,
The little trouble till his death,

So that one day the moment will come,
Of fulfillment of all life's struggles,
To complete and bring to fruition,
Our blessed lives on earth.

Blood on the wayside

Hi,
Today, poem that cries from the depths of the purest heart of Jesus. It calls to us who stray. Let us all surrender our lives to him.

I look out the window,
There's blood on the wayside.
I look out and see,
Blood flows in the drain.

This is not a war city,
But deep inside of you.
I committed to you,
But blood flowed on the wayside.

I trusted in you,
Gave my heart to you,
My fountain of blood to you,
But you spilled it on the wayside.

You lost yourself in selfishness,
You became blind in self pity,
You were weak, but did not pray,
Did not ask for ever-ready help.

The blood that pours is a pure blood,
A blood that's filled with the pain of love.
But every hurting word and act,
Turned into a torrent of pain.

Come back dear one, come back,
Back to the arms of the dear Lord.
Come to the place of rest, dear,
Do not bite the bait of the devil.

For the one above hurts when you hurt,
He weeps when you feel pain inside,
He loves eternally and bears you yet,
Never mind what you have been.

Isn't it beautiful

"You can live your life as if nothing were a miracle,
Or you can live your life as if everything is"

So goes a famous saying. Let us recall those things that are make us wonder:

Isn't it beautiful...
That God's wisdom can be found everywhere
That fools can be wiser than the wise
That the greatest chose to be a carpenters son
That years after working and living, some people realize that the beautiful secrets of life - love and truth - in the most unexpected places...

Isn't it beautiful...
That God loves us so much
That God came to our planet
That he offers himself to come into us
That His love is forever eternal
That the earth shows some shadows of the great heavens
That what we cannot understand with our minds, God reveals to us through our hearts and the Spirit.

That the perfect came to OUR EARTH!!
That perfect love is possible here!!
That death is not the end...
That peace can be found in agony...
That love remains love through pain
That forgiveness is infinite....
That JESUS rides in victory in our darkest moments...

Isn't it beautiful!!!
That we can enter the pearly gates,
That we can ascend the heavenly stairs,
That we can live paradise here on earth,
In the love of our Lord in our hearts,
That that paradise will be all around then...
That we can sing of His love forever...

I hope the beauty of life and hope of heaven fills each of you, my beloved readers. God bless!!

Stairway to Heaven

Reality is just a subset of truth. Life on earth is just a shadow of heaven. Where science ends, faith begins. Faith gives us the wings to go beyond where science can take us. The wisdom of the Almighty goes far beyond the valleys of sin and death. Because Christ conquered both through his Sacrifice. Enjoy this poem and let it take you on the wings of faith. Experience the gentle journey and joy of a blessed heart.

I hold on to a quiet light,
Glistening on my window pane.
We're starving Lord, your people here,
Dying to see your holy way.

I know you set a path for me,
A holy place you have from me.
At night I feel so lonely, Lord,
Because inside, I am not yet there.

To a beautiful chapel Lord, take me,
To a bright, warm place, lead me.
To that door that leads to the stairway,
To the path that leads to you.

Shall I ask what you meant, Lord?
When you showed me that stairway?
The stairway you created in me,
Behind the door to that chapel, Lord.

Your way is most perfect, Jesus,
Your spirit leads me on.
I shall not doubt or worry,
Just trust in you all the way.

We always want to reach the peak,
But you want us to smile all the way,
Even as we are imperfect and hollow,
Your love is all we need, Saviour.

Heaven and Nowhere Else

God blesses us with things that can take us to where he wants us to be. Indeed, in the Bible, the Eucharist and in prayer, we have those wonderful things that can take us to the special place God has prepared for us. See and enjoy this poem from the heart, be refreshed by the blessing and grace of saying yes to God.

To you, Lord, my yesterday, my today,
Years have I known your precious way.
Will I ever find a better way?
Nothing will stop this now!!

Ever with you I will be,
No one can turn me anywhere else.
My work, my hands, I offer thee,
Surrender my breath and heart to thee.

I know your road may be narrow,
But popularity is not for me.
I may lose friends on the way,
But your eternal promises are too great.

How can I lose my inheritance?
How can I abandon those paths of truth?
No man ever has known a better heaven,
Your thunder and power descending on me.

Halleluiah to the God above,
Amen to your will in me.
Today, tomorrow, time has no end,
His reign is for ever.

A smile, a touch, a warm embrace,
Your presence fills me up.
May my work be ashes,
And my body a burning ember.

My flesh be your slave,
My desire tested in your fire.
I shall never be alone,
As long as you love me.

O look dear people at that everlasting love,
Far from all the things of earth,
Turn to the great, keep him as your goal,
And all things else shall come your way.

"The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure in a field. A man sells everything he has and goes back and buys that field."
Matthew 13:44

Most Faithful

We need to find good relationships everywhere. Both at home, and at work. We need God in our hearts always to help us love and forgive. We need the God of love to fulfil our being. A poem singing the great love and faithfulness of a God who is the epitome of perfect love.

How faithful your love, O God,
How great your sacrifice!
I see your son on the cross -
Jesus message of greatest love.

How much you chase after us,
Even when we are unfaithful.
Your patience transcends the limits of time,
As you go after your lost sheep.

I read your message for us, Lord,
Your message for us who stray,
How you embrace us like a Father,
How you prepare a feast in welcome!

Amazing are your ways, Lord,
Great indeed are your works,
But none can match your love Lord,
None, your everlasting faithfulness.

When you say "Father forgive them",
It rings in my ears!!
I see your face on the cross,
Peaceful through forgiveness.

How beautiful to see my Savior,
How awesome his sweet face.
How man longs for your love, Lord.
Let's remember he died in our place.