Know Myself
I want to know myself and so..
I want to be fit for myself to know.
I want to be able as days go by,
Always to look myself straight in the eye.
I don't wish to stand with the setting sun
And hate myself for things I have done.
I don't want to keep on a closet shelf,
A package of secrets about myself.
And fool myself as I come and go,
In to thinking nobody else will know.
The kind of person I really am,
I don't want to dress myself with sham.
I want to step out with my head errect,
I want to deservedly receive men's respect.
And in life struggle for fame and wealth
I wish to be able to like myself.
I don't want to look in the mirror and know,
That I'm just a bluff, an empty show.
I can never hide myself from me,
I see what others never see.
I know what they will never know,
I can never fool myself, and so,
Whatever happens I want to be,
Self respecting and conscience free.
by Ian Straughan
The Importance Of Presence
The importance of parental presence as a support for children's achievements should not be underestimated. It is a clear sign that the parents care when they take the time to come to see their children perform, particularly when the children know that the parents are not there for their own pleasure or enjoyment. This awareness of parental presence is even true among preschool children although in a somewhat muted form. I remember visiting my middle son's nursery school, at the request of his teacher, so I could observe a "problem child" in the class.
It just so happened that I was sitting observing a group of boys, including my son, who sat in a circle nearby.
Their conversation went like this: Child A: My daddy is a doctor and he makes a lot of money and we have a swimming pool." Child B: My daddy is a lawyer and he flies to Washington and talks to the President." Child C: My daddy owns his own company and we have our own airplane."
Then my son (with aplomb of course): "My daddy is here!" with a proud look in my direction. Children regard the public presence of their parents as a visible sign of caring and connectedness that is far more significant than any material support could ever be.
'As a Christian I view my relationship with my Heavenly Father in this way. His presence in my life is more important than any material gain.' Ian Straughan
MEASURE OF SUCCESS
Are you fit for this job? I’m the man.
Can you meet the criteria? Yes, I can.
Can you follow this itinerary? I am able.
Can you shoulder this responsibility? I am capable.
Are you as good as your word? I am good.
Can we count on you? Yes, you could.
Can you take what we dish out? I can take it.
Can you achieve our objectives? I can make it.
This game we play of positive professions.
The things we say in place of honest confessions.
Our daily bread, dependant on our reputation,
A nation run upon fabricated presentation.
We learn to lie, to reinforce their confidence.
Endeavour to try to live up to our pretence.
Under duress, compelled to serve in this farce,
Placed under stress, not knowing what will come to pass.
Will the job get done? I don’t know.
Will the assignment be completed? I’ll have a go.
Will the destination be reached? I might get near.
Will the deadline be met? I’ve no idea.
Will the vision be realised? There’s a possibility.
Will the brief be followed? I doubt my ability.
Will the program be executed? Wait and see.
Will the quota be fulfilled? I’m thinking maybe?
‘If the Lord wills...’, an unacceptable excuse.
Causing cold chills to those planning our use.
They seek for certainties for their fortunes to be projected.
If we give no guarantees, we candidates will be rejected.
But is it possible to commit to anything at all,
If we can not predict the coming pitfall?
Whether acts of God or acts of nature,
All have an effect on us securing the future.
No promise should be given if it can’t be kept.
So how can we accommodate this moral concept?
If we could somehow measure our chance of success,
We may be able to untangle this mess....
I was positively sure that I would have enough time,
But I came up short before the clock’s last chime.
My qualifications matched the stated criteria,
But the challenges proved my knowledge inferior.
I accounted how much money I was required to save,
But the overheads swamped me like a tidal wave.
I planned ahead to have enough resources,
But they were drained before time by undeclared sources.
These material elements on which our performances depend,
Deliver no guarantees for achieving our end.
Our lack of desire can leave us short sighted,
And unprepared to accommodate factors uninvited.
Our slack of commitment can dull our convictions,
Then parameters we set can become our restrictions.
Allocation of resources we stingily ration.
This conservative thinking must be overcome by passion
For the quality of our work to not resemble inferiority,
It is necessary for our goals to become our priority.
Will you follow this fashion? I’ll set the trend.
How far will you go? I’ll fight to the end.
Can you commit to this cause? To the fullest extent.
We’ve expanded our horizons...I’ll enlarge my tent.
Prepare for the unexpected! Before I begin.
Will you cave under pressure? I’ll never give in.
Can you swim against the tide? You’ll see me progress.
Your vision of the future? I’ll be a success!
UNITY
I am bound by shackles brother to brother.
I am a detainee of loyalties once professed.
I am chained to my oaths of yesterday.
I am a prisoner of allegiances confessed.
My next step is shadowed by accountability.
My next move oppressed by regulation.
My next word threatened by liability.
My next thought subjected by expectation.
My expression of identity conflicts with the common purpose.
My expression of individuality suppressed by uniformity.
My expression of desire labelled as self indulgence.
My expression of virtue challenges corporate integrity.
I put my hand up to protest but for unity I put it back down.
I stood up to testify but for unity I sat back down.
I stepped forward to represent but for unity I stepped back down.
I dashed forward to escape but for unity I slid back down.
They have held me in my position by my commitments.
They have held me in my place by my confessions.
They have held me in tow by my secrets.
They have held me in rank by my affiliations.
If I break my silence, I risk humiliation.
If I break my vows, I risk accusation.
If I break my rank, I risk excommunication
If I break my ties, I risk isolation.
They employ me now but I shall resign from this unity.
They exploit me now but I shall regain my dignity.
They exhaust me now but I shall retrieve my energy.
They enslave me now but I shall be free.
THE UNFULFILLED DREAM
Incompleteness, failure, ruin and death
The could ‘as and the should as’ all wasted breath.
The project lies dormant, the structure not built,
The tears over flowing as the milk lies split,
The piling of casualties from the battle not fought,
The pain of regret when the performance came up short.
This is not what the people expected to see.
The reason for this outcome is like a mystery
The Heroes defeated without explanation,
The Visionaries diverted from their destination…
ENOUGH!
Is this the new fashion, is this the new trend?
Are we here for a season, will this losing streak end?
Question after question, who can give an account,
Why the number of failures has reached this amount?
Only now at the end do we all realise.
How did these things take us by surprise?
Prophets and seers have nothing to say.
Should these wise men not have warned us before today?
The vision was a lie but was it ever true?
Could this outcome have been seen before it was due?
Arrogant we were, steps we missed out.
We didn’t understand what these things are about.
This can not be accepted. This can not be resolved,
Until this mysterious problem is solved
At the start we agreed that this path was the way,
An opinion not sustained in the light of this day.
We all testified that our convictions were true.
The future looked bright for the things we would do.
Now things have turned ill, our hope changed to terror,
It’s time to look back and locate the error.
Hope and faith are mankind’s greatest strengths.
Together can take us to extraordinary lengths.
But these alone protect not from delusion
We can find ourselves following an illusion
To achieve the exploits we believed we should do,
We can end up throwing out the things that were true.
Afraid of failure we are blinded to reason.
Critical analysis is branded as treason.
To defend our beliefs with lies that cheer,
Is not evidence of faith but a display of fear.
Faith is the trust of the invisible that is real,
Based on laws that exist not merely hype and zeal.
So it can be measured and therefore projected,
And the future be saved if presumption is corrected.
If deception exists then foresight can be blurred
It must be exposed by the power of the true word
Then gaps can be bridged and the lack can be filled,
Securing foundations before we start to build
So we can accommodate the unforeseen event.
Then the unfulfilled dream will be a thing we can prevent.