POETS UNITED - BOOKS

“The things I want to know are in books; my best friend is the man who’ll get me a book I ain’t read.” - Abraham Lincoln

This week, the midweek motif of Poets United is “books”. I thought that for a bibliophile like me, this poem would be an easy one to write, but perhaps when we are faced with stating the obvious, therein we flounder and find difficulty…

Books

When times were tough,

I delved into your pages and found strength;

When I was sad,

I looked inside and found mirth;

When feeling haughty, proud –

I read and became humble.

In days of desperation,

I searched for hope therein;

In times of mindless frivolity,

I was sobered by your wise words;

In hours of need,

I found within what I sought.

When friendless, lonely,

I found in books the most loyal companion;

When bored and flat,

In books I found the spark of the divine;

When feeling small and insignificant,

I discovered in books my self-respect.

In all my turns of fortune,

I found stability and calm inside;

In every step I took, in every journey started,

I found a true and steady compass there;

In all my life’s every situation,

Each question answered, each problem solved

In books all truth, all hope and all enjoyment…