One Good Man

One Good Man

They said they needed “a few good men.”

He wanted to answer the call;

He was less than five foot four;

But very few have stood so tall.

At first they would not take him in:

His height did not fit their plan;

When the war came, the standard changed,

And the Corps got one good man.

You can say he wasn’t perfect;

Many faults he had

You can say that I am biased,

Because I called him, “Dad.”

But just ask me about him,

I’ll tell you what I can--

I will not hesitate to say,

“He was one good man.”

In summer he took me fishing,

Hunting in the fall;

He loved God and nature, too;

And he wanted me to know it all.

Anger never raised his voice—

A quiet man with peaceful ways—

Standing tall as one good man

Throughout his earthly days.

If you needed what he had

Or just a helping hand,

He was there to meet that need;

If you fell, he’d help you stand.

He took care of his family ties;

Taught me how to love the land;

Now, I’m trying to walk that road—

My Dad was one good man.

©Stan Sanford

June 14, 1996

Crucifixion

Crucifixion

Must I be here a tortured soul

If I’m to reach the destined goal

That you have set for me?

Must I lie awake in the night

To win the war but lose the fight

For what I am to be?

Must I bear this endless pain—

Endure the fire and the rain

To bring my words to life?

And why can’t I vicariously

Know virtual reality

And circumvent  the strife?

This cup I do not want to drink!

But from my calling can I shrink

And be what I must be?

Why can’t you find another way

To let me see another day—

Let this cup pass from me.

If to give life, I’m bound to die;

If I must crawl before I fly,

Then I’ll pick up this cross.

If must face today the grave

And lose my life my life to save,

I count my life as loss.

©Stan Sanford

January 24, 2002

Words

Words

Words run around inside my head

While I’m lying in my bed

When I cannot sleep at night;

So, I get up and try to write

Down the things I want to say

But fine the words have run away.

I look up at the planting moon,

And in my head I hear a tune.

I start to move and feel by chance

My feet have begun to dance;

I look for words that I might sing

But can’t recall a single thing.

Somewhere there’re words that I can use

In my responses to the Muse

When she whispers in my ear

The song of life, simple and clear;

So, I will search until I find

Elusive words and make them mine.

© Stan Sanford 2012

Waiting For the Morning

Waiting for the Morning

She sits beside her window

And stares into the night

She’s waiting for the morning

She’s longing for the light

The night finds her so lonely

Intensifies the pain

She’s praying for the sunrise

To warm her face again

Waiting for the morning

Through the dark of night

For light to give you meaning

When day restores your sight

Waiting for the morning

It is more than you can bear

For you are lost in darkness

And no one seems to care

He’s waiting there on death row

All his appeals are gone

He awaits the consequences

For all the things he’s done

He had a talk with Jesus

He's tried to make it right

He sits there in the darkness

Just waiting for the light

Drowning in my loneliness

I live with constant pain

I’m crying for connections

To heal my soul again

But I have burned my bridges

No advance and no retreat

I’m waiting for the morning

Where need and resource meet

©Stan Sanford

December 03, 2007

Any Friend of Jesus

Any Friend of Jesus

He was a ragged man.

He was living on the street.

He wore a frown and dirty clothes.

He had no food to eat.

Jesus said he was his friend

And would be for all time.

Any friend of Jesus

Must be a friend of mine.

(Chorus)

If you’re a friend of Jesus

You are a friend of mine—

No matter what your circumstance,

No matter what your sign.

I’m not here to judge you

Or criticize you kind.

If you’re a friend of Jesus,

You are a friend of mine.

He lived in a prison cell.

He did not look like me.

We had one thing in common:

We both wanted to be free.

Jesus came and called him friend;

So, freedom he could find.

Any friend of Jesus

Must be a friend of mine.

He was crippled with disease—

An outcast in the land.

His flesh and bone were wasted.

He could not even stand.

Jesus said he was his friend.

He’d not leave him behind.

Any friend of Jesus

Must be a friend of mine.

She made her home under a bridge.

Our worlds were far apart.

She had every thing she owned

In a shopping cart.

She, too, is a child of God;

And Jesus is her sign.

Any friend of Jesus

Must be a friend of mine.

(Final Chorus)

If you’re a friend of Jesus, friend,

You are a friend of mine—

No matter what you’re looking for,

No matter what you find.

I’m not here to change you

Or say you’re out of line.

If you’re a friend of Jesus, friend,

You are a friend of mine.

©Stan Sanford, 2012

Old Too Soon

Life for him has not turned out

The way he thought it’d be

The pictures he used to have

Today, he cannot see

Years ago the world was bright

His mind was filled with dreams

The colors have now faded

And so his hopes it seems

What stole the brightness of the day

Where did the future go

His dreams have turned to ashes

And why he does not know

His life is like the waning moon

For he’s grown old too soon

©Stan Sanford

May 1, 2012

Changes

Landscapes melting into sound

A journey into dreams

Emotions in a tidal pool

Light flowing down in streams

The cobalt magic of the night

Transcends my heart and mind

Beyond the realm of fantasy

Reality and time

Unlike all the nights before

My soul once struggled through

I walk on clouds in azure dreams

My nights are filled with you

In sapphire dreams somehow we met

In many shades of blue

Infusing, swirling, blending there

The moment I met you

All my life was changing

With everything brand new

Fantasy reality

The moment I met you

All my life was changing

In many shades of blue

And I could see an all new world

The day that I met you

A moment then changed everything

My direction and my plans

Elusive expectations

I held there my hands

My dreams became reality

Transcending time and space

The essence the whole of life

I saw there your face

Landscapes melting into sound

A journey into dreams

Emotions in a tidal pool

Light in a flowing down in streams

©Stan Sanford, 2000