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perveman
111 / male
Tucson, Arizona, US
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The Station
By Robrt J. Hastings. My comment: As the year's fly by, this poem say's a lot to me personally.
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| October 13, 2011, 11:50 |
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newbie1011
62 / female
The Shore, New Jersey, US
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Re: The Station
I didn't know if you wanted to post the poem and just didn't know how from your phone so figured I would post it for those who don't know it.
I think it basically says don't regret or always wish and worry for what's might be. Just live in the moment and live every moment to it's fullest.Some people worry to much about putting away for the future but by the time the future comes it's to late to enjoy it.
My grandmother would always worry about how much money she spent because she might not have anything to leave us when she died.She would walk late at night instead of taking a taxi.(It drove us crazy!) I remember the day we sat her down and told her that she would make us much happier if she spent it all on herself to enjoy life and left us nothing.Besides the fact that she was going to have a much shorter life if she kept walking at night and in dangerous places. She was mugged several times.She didn't live near us so it wasn't like we could drive her.She did start taking taxi's sometimes and even took a few nice vacations. But she still worried about as she put it "felt bad about using our inheritance money."
For those who might not know this poem:
THE STATION
By Robert J. Hastings
TUCKED AWAY in our subconscious minds is an idyllic vision in which we see ourselves
on a long journey that spans an entire continent. We're traveling by train and, from the
windows, we drink in the passing scenes of cars on nearby highways, of children waving at
crossings, of cattle grazing in distant pastures, of smoke pouring from power plants, of row
upon row upon row of cotton and corn and wheat, of flatlands and valleys, of city skylines and
village halls.
But uppermost in our conscious minds is our final destination--for at a certain hour and on a
given day, our train will finally pull into the station with bells ringing, flags waving, and bands
playing. And once that day comes, so many wonderful dreams will come true. So restlessly, we
pace the aisles and count the miles, peering ahead, waiting, waiting, waiting for the station.
"Yes, when we reach the station, that will be it!" we promise ourselves. "When we're
eighteen. . . win that promotion. . . put the last kid through college. . . buy that 450SL
Mercedes-Benz. . . have a nest egg for retirement!"
From that day on we will all live happily ever after.
Sooner or later, however, we must realize there is no station in this life, no one earthly
place to arrive at once and for all. The journey is the joy. The station is an illusion--it
constantly outdistances us. Yesterday's a memory, tomorrow's a dream. Yesterday belongs to a
history, tomorrow belongs to God. Yesterday's a fading sunset, tomorrow's a faint sunrise. Only
today is there light enough to love and live.
So, gently close the door on yesterday and throw the key away. It isn't the burdens of today
that drive men mad, but rather regret over yesterday and the fear of tomorrow. Regret and
fear are twin thieves who would rob us of today.
"Relish the moment" is a good motto, especially when coupled with Psalm 118:24, "This is
the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it."
So stop pacing the aisles and counting the miles. Instead, swim more rivers, climb more
mountains, kiss more babies, count more stars. Laugh more and cry less. Go barefoot oftener.
Eat more ice cream. Ride more merry-go-rounds. Watch more sunsets. Life must be lived as we
go along. The station will come soon enough.
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| October 13, 2011, 12:43 |
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perveman
111 / male
Tucson, Arizona, US
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Re: The Station
Thx newbs. Sure, I could have posted the poem via my cell, honestly, too time consuming, and too lazy. Poem pretty much say's it all huh? I saw it year's ago, and it gave me time to reflect, and adjust. Can only live one day at a time, worry is not profitable. (This next is 3rd hand). True story. A man, when he was much younger, happened to visit a mult-millionare, living in a boarding house. After some chit-chat, the then young man inquired as to the reason that the much older lived that way? (rather than people with big bucks do). (Paraphrasing, he said), "Ya know, a man can only wear one set of clothes at a time, and only eat one meal at a time". Reminds me of a decade plus ago, I bouht a very small travel trailer, to live in at the time. I could sleep, eat, shower, watch tv, listen to the radio, and have visitors. And I thought, "Hey, I'm Bill Gates!" Really, just living one day at a time.
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| October 13, 2011, 13:08 |
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