Christ Borne

Aphorism 1. We can know a man's idolatry through the sins he imparts on Jesus.

Aphorism 2. If your image of Christ isn't wholly unblemished, then neither can you be.

Aphorism 3. I once saw a fool boast, "Jesus loves me". Their sin caused a great fall, but then they continued to say, "Jesus would never cause me to fall."

Aphorism 4. I saw a shrine to a wicked man destroyed by a thunder bolt.

Aphorism 5. If one understood Einstein, it wouldn't be impressive that light is both a wave and particle---measured, it will be a particle, yet moves at the fastest speed allowable; therefore, those particles will be waves when not slowed down in a lab.

Aphorism 6. I'm skeptical that merely observing something changes its quantum reaction---I think like light, it makes more sense that it will just behave different when isolated. I'm skeptical of New Age mysticism because I do, Mr. Dawkins, understand science.

Aphorism 7. Choosing a mate ought to be as comfortable a decision as settling into a drawn bath. If love doesn't come that easy, then don't make the mistake of sleeping with them.

Aphorism 8. If love comes naturally, make the mistake of marrying before making the mistake of getting into bed.

Aphorism 9. I've seen so many with good intentions fail to do good. That is why faith is a prerequisite for good works.

Aphorism 10. The planets, sun, moon and stars move exactly how they will. It can be calculated out to infinity. Every body in the universe interacts with time according to its own gravity. Yet, from wherever you stand, all other bodies move relative to your world, keeping all within the same breadth.

Aphorism 11. The sin we are most outraged about in others, is a sin we ourselves have tasted and feared.

Aphorism 12. Prison is the most unforgiving environment. That's how I know guilt is the root cause of all moral outrage.

Aphorism 13. A fool once said, "If you don't sin, Jesus died for nothing." I know she has sin. It's just society is more forgiving toward hers.

Aphorism 14. If a society accepted rape, no one would be ashamed of it. I'm glad I live in a society that understands its gravity. However, all other sins of a carnal nature are just as serious.

Aphorism 15. Adultery, Divorce, Sodomy, Transsexuality, Premarital Sex, Polyamory, Serial Monogamy, Bitterness, Judgment, Hatred, Self-Conceit, Self-Righteousness, Self Centeredness, Ingratitude, and Dishonoring the Sabbath are all carnal sins which our culture deems are noble.

Aphorism 16. To know why our culture is so unhappy, just look at all the sin it calls good.

Aphorism 17. Not all modern inventions are bad. Just like not all old customs are good.

Aphorism 18. Some people desire there to be no meaning.

Aphorism 19. Life is a struggle between Meaning and Nonentity; Good and Evil; Right and Wrong; Kindness and Cruelty; Love and Self-Love... Truth and Aught.

Aphorism 20. The biggest decision in life, is to believe in something or nothing at all.

Aphorism 21. A Rational Moralist has more in common with me than a Christian Fundamentalist.

Aphorism 22. Do not mistake my skepticism. I am fully convinced of the Bodily Resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Aphorism 23. The Bible is true, but not literally. 

Aphorism 24. I'm 100% certain God exists, and He is the God of the Bible; but, I have a different way of understanding Him than most people.

Aphorism 25. Saul died in two different ways. Yet, I'm more skeptical of the Bible's skeptics, than I am of Childlike faith.

Aphorism 26. Jesus, bear our contagion.

Aphorism 27. It is because I sinned---and know you have too---that I believe in the redemptive grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Aphorism 28. I believe all of Genesis literally happened, just not in the literal sense Creationists do.

Aphorism 29. In my mind, prophecy refers to Catholics as Judah, Protestants as Israel, and Orthodox as Ephraim. That is how I understand it, and I've made many true predictions that way.

Aphorism 30. Prophecy is the best medicine. It is continually applicable, based on our actions, thoughts and deeds.

Aphorism 31. Every story in the Bible is true. Very miniscule errors appear to remind us not to worship it, over what we already knew was right.

Aphorism 32. It's not true that history disproves the Bible. Rather, some very curious details corroborate scripture, rather than obscure it.

Aphorism 33. Materialism is its own proof of why belief is valid. In all its wisdom, its greatest attribution to moral philosophy is a work called the "Selfish Gene."

Aphorism 34. Moral Rationalism makes sense, only if morals are attained a posteriori and not a priori. 

Aphorism 35. I think, if one looked throughout all of history, they'd find the most stable and prosperous times were those which best reflected the morals of Jehovah.

Aphorism 36. I saw a man with wisdom contest a man without. The controversy was on good conduct.

Aphorism 37. The wise atheist sees the pitfalls of religion, that it clearly undermines the most basic truths. However, the same atheist cannot know when to yield to exceptions.

Aphorism 38. Canaanites were pedophiles, murderers, child rapists, sacrificed babies, ate those babies, and did all sorts of other horrific things. Yet, prominent intellectuals defend them as if they were innocent.

Aphorism 39. I believe science can find moral truth. Yet, will we accept its findings?

Aphorism 40. Say a perfect moral Law is codified through science---Mankind could only tyrannize with such a stupid force.

Aphorism 41. God exists, necessarily, to judge.

Aphorism 42. The stupidest man I've known, is also one with a high IQ.

Aphorism 43. The clear and present danger of hell is a good deterrent for mischief.

Aphorism 44. The fault in modern Christianity, is that they've forgotten to, also, do good. 

Aphorism 45. When I hear a preacher babble, I turn off his sermon.

Aphorism 46. A ten minute sermon is good enough in most cases. Let the service be devoted to prayer and music, and give the congregation their part to play.

Aphorism 47. Modern Christians are in disorder, or they falsely believe there are no more miracles.

Aphorism 48. If you see a child rolling on the floor during church, rebuke him.

Aphorism 49. Church ought to be melancholy, and filled with rest. Not rowdy and like a rock concert.

Aphorism 50. My sweetest moments of Worship were at Bethel; yet, they were sweet because I sat still before the LORD.

Aphorism 51. The Bible is quite cogent, actually.

Aphorism 52. A preacher ought to spend the entire week shepherding his congregation; rather, most think event calendars and standing for an hour at the pulpit each Sunday is their work.

Aphorism 53. A preacher is not a therapist. He is the one who tells you what the shrink isn't allowed to.

Aphorism 54. If a man has a dark cloud over him, don't automatically assume it's there because he sinned. Likely he did, but your job is to dissipate it.

Aphorism 55. Ministering the truth resolves the soul's conflict.

Aphorism 56. When Jesus said, "This kind comes out only by prayer and fasting," He meant talking to God about the person's ill, and repenting and abstaining from wrongdoing.

Aphorism 57. Starving yourself has no spiritual benefits. According to Isaiah.

Aphorism 58. Children, screaming "Jesus" in the streets isn't as effective as talking one on one.

Aphorism 59. Jay Vernon McGee has deflated me on numerous occasions. And I love him for it.

Aphorism 60. I've encountered Paul Washer's train. That famous sermon of his was one I truly understood.

Aphorism 61. The world hates Mark Driscoll, yet I don't.

Aphorism 62. Ray Comfort would be skeptical of me, yet I'm not Christ; so he ought to be.

Aphorism 63. Bobby Hill, from Maryland, is my favorite preacher. 

Aphorism 64. Matthew Henry Laurens is my favorite commentary. I guess I have more in common with an old Baptist pastor than I thought.

Aphorism 65. C. S. Lewis, G. K. Chesterton, John Bunyan and St. Augustine fed me. As I hope to feed others, despite all our faults and follies.

Aphorism 66. Bishop Robert Barron is a man of God,---yet I exhort him not to forget the exclusivity of the Gospel.

Aphorism 67. Any living man can fall by sin---I ascribe to the Athanasian Creed that we must hold onto the Faith for life.

Aphorism 68. John Bunyan's Calvinism is true, for he received it in a vision. We must not die upon the way.

Aphorism 69. If you love God, you'll keep His commandments.

Aphorism 70. If you do not love God, you're better not believing in Him.

Aphorism 71. God will spit out the Luke Warm Christian---that is the Christian who will not renounce their sins.

Aphorism 72. C. S. Lewis spoke swearwords in Narnia and The Space Trilogy. I hope one day my work is just like his; edifying and my offense overlooked.

Aphorism 73. A creative man must use his creativity to serve God.

Aphorism 74. A man given a mind to fantasize must exert all of it for the Kingdom.

Aphorism 75. This is my work.

Aphorism 76. I have produced a lot of it.

Aphorism 77. One day I hope to Shepherd a congregation, yet I am not above reproach. So, I can't. Therefore, I hope my wisdom is used to build and edify a new church age, one stronger and more convinced of Christ than any other.

Aphorism 78. Epicureanism and Christianity work together well in Western Culture. Epicureanism is the Heart and Christianity the Soul.

Aphorism 79. Everything results from cause and effect. The cause of making bad choices, results in the effect of poor quality life.

Aphorism 80. I'm not sure if a man can be forgiven in this life. That's why it's so important for a man to believe in the other.

Aphorism 81. God doesn't want perfect people.

Aphorism 82. The most foolish turd says with a straight face, "I haven't sinned."

Aphorism 83. Charles Bukowski was wise, in that he realized there isn't much to the American life.

Aphorism 84. Byron was wise, in that he realized Christendom would some day be replaced.

Aphorism 85. Nietzsche was wise, in that he realized if God didn't exist, then neither ought morality.

Aphorism 86. Yeats was wise, in that he saw peace was superior to liberty.

Aphorism 87. Adonis is wise, in that he understands American Decadence, and that democracy is not ubiquitous.

Aphorism 88. Sometimes a little foolishness is needed.

Aphorism 89. Amaris Erin Jorgia O'Conner is the name of the lover I have dreamt up.

Aphorism 90. Like Chateaubriand or Dante---if you consider them poets---I have conjured an ideal woman. She has helped me through many dark times.

Aphorism 91. If we are married to Zion, and God created humanity from Earth's soil... I say that's the thing I'm most excited about.

Aphorism 92. The cool man, is the foolish man.

Aphorism 93. I thought of walking into a room with saints, like I made a grand entrance and was important, but I realized it would probably look ridiculous.

Aphorism 94. Good people aren't genetically disposed toward good---they're actually the ones who know just how genetically screwed they are.

Aphorism 95. I'm sure the purest individuals---as termed by genetics---have done some really awful things.

Aphorism 96. The problem with a good natured man, is that he doesn't realize he is capable of great evil.

Aphorism 97. Positivity is a sickness leading to a negative outcome.

Aphorism 98. Wise men mourn over the masses' stupidity.

Aphorism 99. Wise men also mourn over their own stupidity.

Aphorism 100. I am honest;---that's all I can say.


1. Muse; A True Tanka

A muse---for those who
Chase the Beautiful Naiads---
Is a thought from Christ;
Or, it is a thought from hell,
Whichever the poet serves.

2. The Conqueror

The two greatest men in history died at thirty-three.
One, like Satan himself, conquered the unconquerable.
He laid the stones of Tyre into causeways, and his armies
Passed upon them into the isle,---it fulfilled prophecy
As a wise, good hearted preacher once said.
Years before, Nebuchadnezzar laid siege to it by the Trojan Horse.
Yet this, this conqueror scraped the town to the foundations
And built causeways out to the inner island.
It's been said before.

The other, Christ, none truly believe will bear a sword.
They say of Him, "He is gentle, soft, like a blanket
"Which a toddler carries upon his arm, and suckles his fingers
"And cries to." I say, yes, a toddler does this, yet a mature
Christian ought to feed upon more than milk and honey.
The mature Christian ought to look upon the nations
And see war, that this is what Christ will bring at the end.
A sword, which many tens of thousands, a greater
Army than Alexander's, shall purge the seas
And lay the valleys with blood to the coasts.
He will, in one day, accomplish justice, while the saints
Are huddled like Noah in their mystical arks---
They shall never see it, nor taste of it.
They shall huddle together with love
When Daniel's vision shall be accomplished.
We shall look up, and see our bless'ed conqueror---
And we shalt then be carried up, before
The great and mighty battle; where those rotting corpses
Shall remain in the marshes of hell for eternity. Those who remain,
The small remnant we are, shall inherit the Earth,
Never having tasted wrath; but like Jeremiah,
Shall bear our burdens, when we warn
Men not to ask, "What is the Burden of the LORD?"
We will say to you, "It is thou, o foolish man!"

3. Elvis Sings to Me

Elvis sings a song 
I wrote... Yet he sings the words
Better than my words. 
It is like angels singing.
I published in a journal---

The journal was called
Something, but on the barcode
The name was misspelled.
A dubious journal that
I had to pay to publish.

The Elvis song was 
Like my Hail Britannica 
Recording. Some words
Were sung for their lyrical
Flow, differently than the page.

It left some questions 
In my mind, whether my work's
Quality were true.
Yet, dreams of music mean I
Feel peace and accomplishment.

It seems Elvis' 
Song,---the true meaning had come,---
Is God's word. And my
Paltry poetry is a 
Close likeness, but not scripture.

4. Self Reflection

I sit. I think about Micah 7. But, I cannot sit for long. In the Black Screen of the TV, turned off, I see my reflection. I get nervous--- Anxious--- I even hate it. I see an arrogance. I understand what my family is seeing in me.

Inwardly, I feel peace. Like I'm accomplishing my goals, little by little. That I'm winning my battles. That my silence, my inaction, is not contrary to what I'm supposed to be doing right now. Like Micah 7. I sit in darkness. I do not know what else I can do. I say to myself, "I have sinned." 

Seeing myself from the outside, I can see how it drives my family crazy. To see the me perceived by others, it is hateful, arrogant, slovenly, lazy, prideful... That is how I appear when reflected in the TV. I see myself like I am seen by others.

Inwardly, I am not a ravenous wolf. Inwardly, I am calm, reticent, without fear, forming more understanding on the nature of being kindhearted, forgiving and able to trust. I see in my reflection someone else. Like I saw in my mother a sort of nonchalance reflected which wasn't her true feelings. Appearances can be deceiving. It seems like I am not at rest. It seems like I am unwise, lazy, prideful, vain, arrogant... inwardly, I know all of that is the opposite. I am trying my best to see the world through other's eyes, to draw from wisdom a cup of salvation. To understand.

I see what I look like to the outside world. I even am close to hating myself. But, that is not me. Like my mother's mien, I misread it for nonchalance when it was simply her playfulness. We put on an outward display which is not reflecting what is inward. I see myself from the perspective of others. It looks vain... Inwardly, I am contemplating the truths which are foundational to the world. I can see why people hate me. But, I can tell you, what you see in appearance is not who I am underneath. Outwardly, I am a ravenous wolf, but inwardly I am a lamb with a lion's courage and a serpent's wisdom. I look vain, stupid, insecure, lazy, prideful, arrogant,---like I am continually not at ease. But, I know from my reflection that what I seem is not what I am. Inwardly, I am at peace, readying myself to flee and lay aside this world's cares.

5. Writer not a Gamer

You were always better than me at games.
I'd fight my way to Great Tiger
And you'd fight your arch nemesis Mr. Sandman.
I remember at Stratego, you placed
Your troops in illogical order.
No bombs surrounded your flag.
I'd send my rows in columns,
My massive armies,
And you'd take one little guy
And decimate an entire force.
Haphazardly, the guy would walk
An eight getting blown up with a bomb.
My generals would defend, but the damage was already done.
Star Wars, Donkey Kong, and Punch Out
Mario, That game we borrowed from Meredith,
You were always better than me.
I play my cards... but lose.
I can see the strategy to win the game at Risk,
But I refuse to conquer the world.

You were a hero to me,
Able to get to Mr. Sand Man
And beat Soda Popinski.
Your epic foe, Mr. Sandman.
Once, I think I saw you get to the guy
Right before Mike Tyson.
We were never a gaming family...
My scrabble skills are par excellence.
I am able to score above three hundred and seventy
In a two player match regularly.
But, that just gets to my real talent.
Words---I love them.
Meaning. My childhood obsessions 
With gemstones, coins, rocks, plants, birds,
Animals, Alcohols---I wanted to know every kind.
I wanted to know all the different things.
I was very curious... always compiling facts
Data, in encyclopedic form.
Stories I loved, art... I still gorge myself on art.
The more fantastic, the more I loved it.

A part of me would like to be good at games.
But, I am not good at them.
I never was. I'd get to Great Tiger
At about the age of seven.
I showed no prodigiousness at games.
I can understand the rules...
I'm good at memorizing specific details
And remembering after a long time how games ought to be played.
But, even chess, I didn't know about En Passant 
Until I was about twenty-four.
When John played a trick on me, and I thought he lost his mind.
I thought I could get one past him
By jumping my pawn past his.
And that's when I learned it.

Our family, loving games, were not top quality gamers.
You could just barely beat Soda Popinksi. He was a rival of ours
And I'd watch you, with starry eyes,
Sometimes get to the Sandman...
And he, he was our arch nemesis.
And once you beat him. Only once.
And you got knocked out in one punch
By Macho Man.

I guess I'm saying I ought to be a writer.
As, the only other thing I could be is a gamer.
And I'm not very good at games.
Love you, Mom.

6. Uncle Don

A cherry Chevy in the Apartment's garage
Sits with a lock and a yellow sign with a handgun on it,
Warning not to enter. A laborer of Caterpillar
A father to two, a good husband...
His PA Dutch accent was thick.
He was simply spoken, a hard worker
Wore suspenders... He was Blue Collar Pennsylvania.
I already miss him.

He dated a black woman.
This came as a surprise to us.
He was soft spoken, and once told me
That on an occasion where corporal punishment
Was being used, he took the belt from Pap-pap
And told him, "That's enough of that."
He owned my Great Grandmother's apartment
Which housed her nicely through her life---
That apartment was in our family for generations.
Later he would rent it out and tell us about the tenants.
Some were good, some were bad.

He was salt of the Earth.

There was a twinkle in his eye
When I would tell him about my jobs as a Tree Trimmer.
I never made it at that job,---
A friend always "accidentally" sabotaged my work;
But, I don't remember Don making me feel inadequate.
Rather, I think he was just proud that I put in a day's real work.
He'd always tell me, "You staying out of trouble?"
I'd say, "Always."
We'd talk, while he would smoke his cigarette.
Cigarettes into his seventies---
He and his son would talk mechanic talk
Smoke cigarettes,
And I felt welcomed into the conversation.
He never judged me.
Probably because he and I thought a lot alike.
Mostly alike. That generation I have a lot more in common with
Than my own.

My Big Black Lab was---for a time---
Not a nice dog. Uncle Don walked through our front door
And kneed him in the chest and literally scarred the shit out of him.
He was not a guy you wanted to be on the bad side of.
He was strong, muscular even into his old age.
My Mom said of an old picture of him, that he was a "Hottie".
He was strong, forgiving, righteous,
And I remember him driving me home from my Aunt's
We had a long talk. We both agreed that our cousins 
From out of town were... well... a little bit too liberal.
I don't know if I talked about Jesus with him in that car ride,
But I lived and talked about Jesus a lot.
I only hope somewhere, through osmosis,
He gained a confession.

Yesterday, there was a light in the sky.
My dad and I thought it was a planet.
I went in, and brought out my farmer's Almanac
Which I had just bought, seeing if it were Venus.
It wasn't. Rather, it was a light in the sky,
And I'd like to think that it was his soul passing onto heaven
Checking up on us one last time.
I know he found Jesus.

7. The Robins in February

Two robins fly on a branch in February...
The naturalists lie through their ignorance.
"It's not uncommon to see the bird
"In winter time." Yet, I never have until today.
Never once, in thirty-two years
Have I seen a robin in February.
The Blackbirds had I seen,
And in one week, the Robin?
A sure sign of spring,
Should the Robin tarry in winter
It means eternal spring.
It means, unfortunately, the climate
Is changing. There is no way
A half-millennia's worth of wisdom is wrong.

8. Charcuterie

Three cheeses,
Smoked Gouda, Drunken Goat Cheese,
And a third orange one with some fruitiness.
Strawberries, and succulent grapes---
It's a good season for grapes.
Conversation swings to metaphor.
Everyone is trying to understand what is a metaphor.
Ask the poet in the room...
But Aunt M________ was right
Yet was scolded.

I offer to the semi-curious onlookers
"Dead Metaphor."
None ever heard of that.
There is also complex metaphor.
There is negative capability---
When a poem has doubtful interpretations
Or perhaps two or three.
Some also call that Wit,
When you can draw out two or three meanings for a poem.

A simile uses "Like" or "As".
I didn't dare get into Ekphrasis or something more complex.
Though, I did get to a dead metaphor,
And this pleased A____.
He'd never heard of it before.
A way to explain it,
Is a metaphor so commonly applied to an object
That it became a part of the lexicon.
A "Tailgate" is a dead metaphor.
Emphasis on the "Tail"
That it applies to the "Tail"
Of the truck. Others are "Causeway"
Or "Parkway" which are different a little
As those entail also oxymoronic statements.

I learned that these concepts are difficult
For even an intelligent person to understand;
My family is not stupid.
As a lawyer struggled to understand them.
Apparently an entire argument erupted at his office
Over their specific meanings.
You just got to kind of feel them out...
Like with all literature.

Some can be applied two or three different ways.
Idiom was understood.
We agreed that "A watched pot never boils"
Was proverbial. I do agree it is difficult to pin down 
What exactly this device is.
Is it Cliché? Is it Idiom? Is it Proverbial? Is it Metaphor?
Maybe all four.
How it is metaphor, is that it is not literally true
That a watched pot never boils.
But it is counter intuitive, because one sees the common
Activity of watching a pot, so the familiarity hides the deceptive untruth.
 As, certainly, me in my absurd focus during cooking,
I have watched a pot
And seen the moment it has begun to boil.
It kind of has a bubble or two at first, then a few bubbles,
Then bubbles collect on all the sides of the pot,
To which it begins to raise to the top.
And finally, after a slow increase in turbulence,
It begins to rapidly percolate.

Not paying attention to the water boiling,
Which is what the metaphor means,
Shortens the attention, and one doesn't notice
These steps. Rather, at one moment it seems
To be steady---probably steaming a little---
And the next the water rolls in that beautiful way.

I didn't really want to argue. I just listened.
I spoke what I understand is a metaphor.
More of a complex idea that is full and filled with meaning.
It's something like the Logos
Of an old Twilight Zone Episode
Where you know what the episode is really saying.
Which, is likely an idea attached to the real world
Gained through something which is pure fantasy.
Though, nonfiction can have metaphor, too.
The way I understand it.
As, the entire piece builds up to a meaning,
A full idea or revelation about something deeper than the actual
Events being described.
So, true stories can have metaphors in them, too.
A parable is a form of metaphor.
Allegory and Analogy work through metaphor.
As, in literature, metaphor is a parent class
Of a range of literary devices
Which simile is included.

Alyse showed everyone how to eat the smoked salmon.
I preferred it with the Drunken Goat cheese,
And the strawberries elevated the flavor of the grapes.
The strawberries were weak, but even my cousin
Noted, that they made everything around them taste better.
Like a good wine ought to do.

9. A Hard Day's Work

I put in a satisfying day of hard work.
Drank my cokes on break.
Felt achy in every joint.
Tired was the word, pooped,
Treading on hot sidewalks.

I came home, and I lay on my bed.
The hours passed by, slowly.
I realized, that dread from childhood
Of the passage of time slowly
Was built for a purpose.
When one works all day,
Eight hours, and comes home physically exhausted,
Time ought to move more slowly
So you can hopefully be better prepared for the next day's work.

10. Philosophical Treatise

I come to the subject of philosophy today
And in thirteen meter verse shall I hereby allay
For the mystic number Thirteen,---superstition I
Do not believe, nor Kabbalah, nor silly, rogue eyes
Upon the dollar bill are conspiracy; rather
Thirteen is the mystic number of naught, but further
Understand, Thirteen Colonies belayed our good land
To bring Freedom to the Western World and 'twas grand
This Epicurean nightmare which became of us
Where pleasure drove us to the pits of many grievous
Philosophies. And, abandoning Christ we denied
Science; for Epicurean we were 'till this nigh
Point in time, when science improved the lives of many.

My philosophy is quite simple. That tangible 
Chords of History---what we know is found there, devils
Have played at the end of every society. Then
Came war, famine, disease, tyranny, or change would spread
From the land quite organically. From history
I believe we find self evident truths, governed free
From human folly or subjective thoughts. As true as
God's Law, we see proven as a social form of math.
For the Epicurean wisdom of pleasure here 
On Earth, one need follow the Laws of Christ, and so fear
The locomotion of cause and effect, which brings fates
Of ill's misfortune upon men who are profligate.
For, the disobedience to God's law causes such
Invisible strings of faith to break and fracture, thus,
Failure to love and be kind shadows those present times.
For, men not being wise enough to foresee it, find
Mischief for themselves and all around them, and thereby
Create unnatural perditions for all which doth lie
Within their terrible reach---oppressing each other
Through unnatural laws, and the ordinances of Sin.
Thus, the only ones who have joy are those then given 
To what is a most eternal unrest. Then failure
To thrive inhibits all citizens, save those most cruel;
In such world, it is given to the cruel to rule.

11. Biblically Accurate Angels

The Cherubim, like
A griffon, haunches with
Its four faces of the
Man, Lion, Eagle and Calf.
It, covered with eyes, has wings.

Then, the Twenty-Four
Elders, look like human men
With hoary, crowned heads
Robed in brightly, shining Cloth.
These are the second.

Then there are the Thrones
Seated nigh Jehovah's Courts
Who are in the form
Of men and women. These sing
Their hymns of Battles and Heart.

Then, Archangels are
Two, Michael and Gabriel,---
Those now tasked as the
Messengers of God,---carry
God's utmost important news.

Then Seraphim, like
A loong, with feathered wings, it
Flies, though it didn't
Cover its face or legs toward
Me when I saw them singing.

Then, are numerous
Angels we do not know of.
Many myriads.
First of, are the raised in Christ,
Then many awesome creatures.

Then the Cherethims
Who are demons, rogue Seraphs
Two rogue Cherubs, whom
Are the Dragon and Beast,---the 
False Prophet is of Satyrs.

Antichrist, I think,
Was an Archangel. He whom
Is Lawless upon
Our forsaken Earth. Satan's
Coup is ordered without Christ.

12. The March Moon

I see the March moon;---
There, it hovers long
Like a contrail in the sky,
But, moves imperceptibly,
Like a large clock's hour hand.

13. Self Assessment

IQ... 157

Myers Briggs... INFP Though I want to be an INFJ, I am not conscientious enough.

Multiple Intelligences

Verbal... 100%
Mathematical... 57%
Musical... 77%
Kinesthetic... 23%
Spatial Visual... 73%
Interpersonal... 90%
Intrapersonal... 100%
Naturalistic... 90%
Existential... 100%

Big 5 Personality

45% on Extroversion
67% on Emotional Stability
80% on Agreeableness
12% on Conscientiousness
96% on Intellect and Imagination

14. Rorschach Poem 1

City of dreams;
The little African with the clay pot
What does this mean?
 
Dreams, dreams,
What do you mean?
Nothing, except to warn me.
For, I love the form of woman
And see what she seems:
Don’t make me what I’m not, please.
 
For, my little African woman
With the clay jar at the waters,
There I see you, with your breasts
And your jar to take back to the fathers.
Why say I’m not what I’m calling
When my mind is different than the mass of human falling?
There she is, with her jar by the lake;
Taking her jar to her husband’s plate.
There she is, with her ugly face
Looking like some African women
Who I’ve known one day.
 
There you are, little African woman
Taking your pot to the waters.
There’s your piercing upon your knee
Decoration, bone jewelry, not a penis you see.
Why, because I see the woman doing
What women have done
For centuries.
Leaning over the watering hole
And getting water for their villagees.
 
Why, why, does the Rorschach speak such falsehood?
I don’t know, for I see it as I know.
A woman going to a watering hole.
Do you see it too?

15. Rorschach Poem 2

Dreams, dreams
Here, walking toward the mountain
From the desert is a beaver
He searches for the fountains
With his tale extended hither.
 
There be his head,
And there be his ears
He is white and red
There you go little beaver.
Searching for your home
Beneath the massif’s loom
There you go,
From the desert, like Israel.
Searching for the homes
A mountain of treeheal.
 
There you go, little beaver
On your little way.
Rorschach, of this what do you say?


16. Rorschach Poem 3

Dreams, Dreams,
Lucille Ball, there you are,
Staring in a mirror.
There you are, Lucille Ball
With your bunny eared fame
Staring into mirrors ready for the play.
There you’ll bumble out onto the stage
And there Ricky and you will do some hilarious thing.
Below your famous bosom
Be the wooden desk
On which you stare into the glassy pane.
 
There you are, readying for the show;
Putting on make-up, puckering up
To see if it is caked or evenly rose;
Lucille Ball, my friend, ready for a hilarious cancan
Where you’ll bumble to and fro.
 
Rorschach and Freud, what do you say?
That my mother is Lucille Ball today?
Nay, nay, ridiculous thing;
For look at the woman’s face
And you’ll see!
Alas, in our generation of playboy bunnies
I say she’s comedy gold, readying for a cancan that’s funny.
For, the trick to the Rorschach is to be honest you see:
And to not let your shrink trick you into seeing what you do not see.
 
For how can anyone who knows Hugh Hefner
Not see a playboy bunny?
So, idiots of mind, make pure from what is most unkind.
The subconscious is a lie, a dastard lie
So, just know all it is is your immediate notions applied!
 
This is what I see, Lucille Ball
With bunny ears ready for a cancan’s fall;
There she’ll go onto the stage
Where before she put on makeup for fame.
See what is pure in these Rorschachs you see,
And God will heal your mind from any infirmity.

17. Rorschach Poem 4

City of dreams,
Dream away,
Two elephants touching noses today.
There be Dumbo, the flying elephant;
There be his friend as well.
Look at his legs,
And look at his trunk
The Elephant Dumbo displays.
 
What do the elephants do?
What way do they see in the lake?
They are just walking by the pond
And the one on the right sees himself in the sun
And sees his reflection some say.
Thus is what I see,
An Elephant looking into a lake
After drinking a huge drink;
This elephant, water allayed.

18. Rorschach Poem 5

Dream, Dream, thou City of Dreams
Here sits two men,
Two Russian dancers doing the Mazurka
Upon their red, leather boots.
There they stand, doing their country’s dance
A wardance, from ancient customs old;
Bringing to mind the joys of peace,
And the overcoming of past battles.
The two dance together,
Joining hands in victory.
The old folk dances of the peasants
Of Moscow, celebrating Czar Alexander;
Natasha Rostov doing her Mazurka
In the frock, after the hunt
In victory; victory, Mazurka,
Victory; Victory’s herald
Of the dance of war, for the celebration of peace:
Conqueror Czar Alexander! Defender of Europe.

19. Rorschach Poem 6

Dream, dream, city of dreams:
A moth, a moth, drawn to the flame
A moth, a moth, warmed by the flame
Upon the other side, a butterfly’s wing.
It’s frilled silk
Comes out on the fringe.
 
A moth, a moth,
Why do these tests make such lies?
For, all I see is a moth and a butterfly.
 
Men look to the moth,
And say, “Don’t see the alligators upon its wing,”
And now I see them, don’t you?
What a horrid thing!
Yet a bat I do not see,
For it is rightly a moth.
Whoever sees a bat is insane,
Not I, does this make you wroth?
 
The Rorschach test
Is not real psychology:
But it can help us see our immediate pathology.
Look into the picture,
And draw what you will.
They have exact answers,
According to what’s shown there still.
For this is objectively a moth,
The two dancing figures a Mazurka
The two women, Lucille Ball looking into a mirror
And the Elephants and Water Pots, of this I’m sure of.
Why do we use them?
Because people are sick:
What I say is right,
As it is logically what’s depict.
 
Insane I may be,
But test me in this:
If after looking at the objects
Are my poems amiss?

20. Rorschach Poem 7

Dream, Dream,
A palm tree over a desert island I see.
Or an angel, there above the New Mexico crests
Spread arms out to give a hug,
And flying through the New Mexican gorge.
There, staring above the gorge
Is the angel,
Her butterfly wings behind her,
Seraphim; there, ruler of the valleys
The New Mexican plateaus.
There she is, or perhaps a palm tree
There in the ravine.
 
What is so crazy about seeing this?
Turn the picture, and see what, exactly?
I see the palm or seraphim
In the New Mexican Desert;
Why? Because New Mexico is beautiful
Fantastically exotic, yet American nonetheless.
Beautiful, there I imagine flying through the gorge
And seeing the canyons and ravines,
The pillars of rocky sandstone,
A beautiful, sunny landscape
That amazes the eyes.

21. Rorschach Poem 8

Dreams, Dreams
Two blue crabs
Doing a dance to the Eiffel Tower
Beneath a sandy beach.
Some seaweed grows there
With some Lobsters
And some fish.
The big red things are a Coral reef
You see, or maybe a shark or a dauphin?
Don’t know which one.
But today I’m agitated…
So I might see a shark.
Do you see what these are used for?
For immediate impressions, friends
For my mind is agitated
And I know it.

22. Rorschach Poem 9

Dream, Dream
I see fire.
 
It's a warm, toasty fire.
I can see why you're not supposed to see
Anything so vibrant or green.
A crazy thought crossed through my mind:
Maybe there's some credence to these things.

23. Rorschach Poem 10

The last and final.
What I see is an old man ready for battle
With his blessed armament
And a dragon that just got body slammed.
The thing down at the bottom looks like a toothed beast
And He looks like a warrior in a helmet
Donning a chariot
Ready to take down the Whore of Babylon.
Thus, what I most feared,
To be afraid of authority,
I fear not; for this authority shall bring down my enemies for me.
Selah.

24.

I'm not a homosexual, at all.
I really can't be homosexual;
In my dreams I make love to women
And am repulsed by men.

However, this primitive response
Is likely inspired by my watching the Jungle Book.
It imprinted on me from a young kid
And I had associated the activity of gathering
Water in a clay pot from the Jungle Book
As a feminine activity.
Displaying a preference for defined gender roles in society.
It is offensive for me to think that the appendage is a penis.
I can't bring myself to think that,
But rather, with the African theme, it is bone jewelry.

25. 

The general motif here is of the average individual.

26. 

I see Lucile Ball looking into a mirror.
A mirror response indicates narcissism---
While I'm unhappy about that, it is a trait of mine
To be selfish, which I'm working on.
It is also---if I'm interpreting the data correctly---
Indicative of a thoughtful and reflective personality.
However, I'm skeptical of that interpretation
And believe it to be on there to ease the egocentricity
Of people with severe Antisocial personality disorder---
I will interpret the card as having a strained relationship with my mother.
Not narcissism, though I have severe selfish streaks in me which I recognize.

The comical nature of Lucile Ball indicates I find my mother humorous,
Which I do. The Playboy Bunny reflects my pure attitude toward sex.
As, the only sexual image on any of the cards is reflected in the Playboy Bunny
Ears, which remind me of Lucile Ball about ready to do a Cancan---
As I probably also saw that imagery in one of the episodes of I Love Lucy at a young age.

27.

I see two elephants looking into a pool at the bottom of the card.
Not one elephant looking into a reflection, therefore it cannot be a mirror response.
They remind me of Dumbo, which is imprinted on me from my childhood
As a misfit who has always been singled out as being "Special";
Which is probably also where some of the narcissistic tendencies come from.
I see two distinct elephants.

28.

I see two Russian Dancers doing a Mazurka
Which is a form of Russian Peasant dance.
I've seen it many times in the movies
And have read about it in War and Peace---
Therefore my association with it comes from the Russian Novelist's
Description. Which is a celebratory dance;
And in that particular book it was a symbol
Of the Russian vigor winning freedom from the French.

29. 

I have the average response for this.

30. 

I see a unique item here, a New Mexican Gorge.
Particularly, I see a canyon of hoodoos.
And an "Angel" or "Palm Tree."
The Angel indicates a feeling of being falsely accused
Or being overly punished.
Why in New Mexico is probably from seeing imagery
Of its canyons and ridges in so many TV shows
It has imprinted on me.

31.  

I see a lot of the common imagery in this one, too.

32.

I see the common imagery in this.

33.

I see an old man in a helmet  
Who is sitting over a Dragon pelt.
It is very common imagery.
The beast at the bottom looks like a dragon
And I interpret the Dragon as being defeated
By the man in the helmet.
Probably indicating the strong Paternal
Bond I share with my dad.

34. 

As a whole, I have four common answers.
I have nine whole answers. Which indicates extremely high levels of creativity.
I have a few movement answers. Which indicates maturity of thinking.
I have a few color answers. Which the colors are usually calm or idyllic.
I have one mirror answer---which is an indication of narcissism, and I'm working on that. It also might express the strained relationship with my mother.
I have a few detail responses, which indicate a moderate level of alertness.
I have one sexual response, which the indication of the nature of it was a pure attitude toward sex, relating it to Playboy.

35. My Creed

First, I attest to the three oldest creeds of the faith.
The Athanasian Creed, the Apostle's Creed and the Nicene Creed.
Second, I believe in John Bunyan's understanding of Calvanism.
I believe we are sealed by God, through the predestination of His election,
And that we must hold onto our Seal, lest we succumb to death by rejecting Christ.
I believe every man, woman and child are called and written into the book of life
Until they have sinned, and were thereby separated. 
Yet, by accepting the LORD Jesus, our names are rewritten back into the book of life.
If we lose our profession of faith, our names will be blotted out of the book of life.
I believe in the Millennial Kingdom, as prophesied in Isaiah, Ezekiel and Revelation;
That it is its own distinct time and dispensation
Meant to give sustenance to those who've suffered in this life; that they shall then gain the things of this world during Christ's reign, and it will be so that the Meek inherit the Earth.
I believe in dispensations, that first men had a vapor of knowledge that God exists
And later, God would reveal Himself to Abraham, and Moses, the Prophets and finally reveal Himself unto Death as Christ Jesus, and furthermore through the Apostles.
I believe works of charity are integral for salvation. If one has sustenance, they must give to the poor, and have a deep desire to do so.
I believe that the Old Covenant is what Jesus referred to as "Finished", 
And that when Paul says "Works" he means "Works" pertaining to the Mosaic Covenant.
I believe in the direct revelation of Prophets and Faith Healings and Tongues---
That all these gifts are still active today.
I do not believe the Bible is literally inerrant, because I believe it must be that men do not worship it above God.
I believe God's law is inherent, and can be observed by those outside of the church, and even discovered and witnessed.
I believe in the Miracles of Genesis, and that God's Omnipotence is above my own understanding.
I believe the morals set down by Christ and His Apostles are the law we must follow, and that the Mosaic Law in the Old Testament we must abstain from following.
I believe every man, woman and child deserves a sentence of death, as described in the Mosaic law, and this is why Christ accomplished grace at the cross, for even disobeying the Sabbath---who is Christ---is a penalty worthy of death.
I believe in the Old Liturgy and Hymns over newly created ones, save that the hymns have rich theology based in the Holy Prophecies of Christ.
I believe the Rapture is at the 6th seal, as is prophesied by Christ and John.
I believe that if I hold onto these beliefs, and never reject them, and all others taught by God through the Holy Scripture and Prophets and Saints, that I shall never see nor taste of death, and I shall never need suffer through the seven years of tribulation.
I believe in laying no barriers to Baptism, save a confession that Jesus is the LORD, that He raised, and a confession of the Trinity.
I believe true salvation is evidenced by a deep desire to Fear God's name, and walk in His commandments.
I believe in the Fruit of the Spirit, Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Gentleness, Self Control, Goodness and Faithfulness are gifts from God, and come from no other source but through God, and are the evidence of the faith.
I believe that I am a sinner, guilty of capital punishment and therefore guilty of hellfire, and so need God's grace to return unto Him, and walk a perfect walk with an unstained conscience.

36. Nursing Home

I can smell the vomit on her breath.
She's so anxious her stomach won't settle.
I sit with her for an hour
And the nurses are finishing their
"Charts." They tell me,
I didn't ask... "We'll set Mel down for her nap
"After we're done with Charts..."
Or whatever the word they used was.
They stood in front of a wall sized tablet computer
And picked at it for about twenty minutes.
I see they are done,
So I politely ask, "Since you're done with charts
"Can you please lay my grandmother down?"
Then they gaslight me, "Charts?"
Like they hadn't just told me they would.
I get a little sense of what it's like in there.
Finally, after two more times asking,
And my grandmother pleading with me to stay
Until they put her to bed,
They take her, and don't even put the 
Safety feet on her wheelchair.
Apparently, that's only if residents
Can't hold up their feet.
I knew otherwise, but didn't say anything.
I tell them three times they are doing good,
And was about to give them commendations.
Then, they put her on her bed,
And frustrated they have to do a little extra work
They shove her socks on, yank up her pants,
And yank her so hard that my Mimi hits her head on the bed board.
She cries out the whole time---I've seen it once before
But not this violent---
And I walk out of the room.
My grandmother pleads for me,
I walk in and tell them, "These are human beings."
My face contorts, I can feel it furrowing into a frown.
They look at me like I had spoken a foreign language.
It never occurs to them that they are doing something wrong.
Because they've been inconvenienced when asked to do their job
They take it out on an eighty-seven year old woman.
I hold in my anger as best I can.
I tell them in the politest tone possible to leave.
They try to turn it back on me, but I won't let them.
They leave, one by one.
I report it. Got a phone call.

My dad had a similar experience with just how cruel people are getting.
The life and soul of people has been sucked out of them,
And all their love and good nature is gone, it seems.
Like Micah said, "Woe is me, for I desired the first ripe fruit off the vine."
I learned recently that the statement was Micah looking for kindness in Israel.

37. A Philosopher

I score so high
On everything
But the most important.

I foresee my folds
Will remain sloppy.
My lack of kinesthetic 
Intelligence precludes me
From all labor positions.

My half-wise math skills
Make me useless
As an engineer or accountant.

My high iq and lack
Of conscientiousness
Makes me useless
As a grunt.

My criminal record
Makes me useless
As a Social Worker
Lawyer,
Or Nursing Home
Concierge.

My limitation
As a musician
Makes me proficient
Yet, nowhere near professional.

I have an INFP
Personality---
Like Tolstoy
       Wordsworth
       Tolkien &
       Shakespeare.
A dreamer.

Some say Jesus
Was an INFP.

Yet, Jesus was high
On all attributes
Of intelligence.
I realize, with peace,
I cannot be,
Nor ever was,
Perfect.

38. Faith Trumps Magic

Magic---I'm telling preachers---
Is delusion. Sangria, Voodoo,
Canaanite Magic, it works through hatred
And bitterness. The way a crowd
Turns on a righteous man---
Vindictive Indignation is a powerful agent.

The preachers believe, right now,
That Satan performs wonders.
Lying wonders---uncorroborated
By any witnesses.
And what wonders Satan employs,
Drives the witness mad
Though hypnotism or sleight of hand.

Faith, however, is like the wind---
Its substance is unseen,
Yet can topple mountains.
Faith, is to see the Stars
And know that our fortunes lie not within their mystery,
But rather, the stars are a timepiece
Calculating each day so minutely,
That no other in history will ever be like so.
Faith is to see the bounds of human love
To see the bounds of human kindness
And, also, to see the bounds of human pride and folly;
Lust, lasciviousness and deceit,
To discern between them which is good,
And to forsake which is evil.

Faith understands reality rests on God's Will alone,
While Magic assumes The Self is the authority, 
From self-will and self-deceit.
That, when in the presence of Demoniacs,
Rather, it is Power emitting from God
Which casts them out,---
Spiritual impartations 
Aneled upon His people through divine love.

Therefore, what distinguishes between the two,
Is that Faith is real, and Magic is not.

39. Correlation

There is such a thing as Kinesthetic Intelligence.
It was the thing I was teased about in school.
My clumsiness, my doppy failure to cut straight lines
Or make neat letters.
From there, not being able to do the basic
Things the other kids could,
I failed to produce any quality work.
My sloppy handwriting was unreadable,
Or I wrote too slow to keep up in class.
Today, I try to work---
Whether as a Tree Trimmer, or a Laundry Worker
Or a Painter---it isn't waking up early
That I can't do. I actually like waking up early.
It's something deeper. It's the actual work
I fail to do right. I have no sense of body movement;
No sense of where my body is
Or where it was before.
I shoot the paper wad into the trashcan
Six or seven times before it ever goes in.
I feel like such an idiot.
I see my work, and I know it's not going to get better.
Sooner or later, the closets are going to be in disarray,
My sloppy folds will be wrinkled, and it will just get worse.
In painting, my body doesn't know which place I went before.
I have no sense of where I've been, or where I'm going.
In tree trimming---chainsaws and falling logs---
Are not a good place for me to be.
I look at my intelligence, 
And it seems the best job for me is right here.
My intelligence is in the top percentiles
For Verbal, Intrapersonal and Existential intelligence.
For Interpersonal and Natural intelligence
I'm in the nineties.
Writing is my gift---
If America is the land of opportunity,
Then I ought to be able to feed myself from this.
My mind isn't high in Mathematical Intelligence.
This is what I need.

40. I Am a Calvinist

I am a Calvinist.
"But, you believe in choice."

Calvinism isn't the doctrine
Of Free Will versus Determinism.
That is a philosophical presumption
Which doesn't belong in theological discussions.

Calvinism is the doctrine of Predestined Grace
And the Sealing of God's Saints through the Holy Spirit.
That God, and God alone, empowers a man to make choices.
It also assumes that God already knows beforehand
Who will choose God, and thereby receive Grace.
However, how can one be blotted out of the book of life
If there is no choice to follow God's commandments?
Simply, it leaves a lot to ask,
As I can't be Arminian because
If I held onto my Seal of God's Approval myself,
By only my own power,
And it wasn't bound to me through God's seal of grace,
I would be certainly one who would make the wrong choice.

Rather, it is God's love, yet also our love.
True love never fails---and if one is capable of true love
God's Love abides upon that person forever.
If a man is adulterous, he shall be written a bill of divorcement.

41. Melodies

The true condition of a man's soul
Is reflected in the music he desires.

If a man is truly joyful,
He will listen to jubilant tunes.
If a man is truly sad, and doleful,
He will listen to somber melodies.
If violently passionate,
His music will have violent passions.
If he is angry, bitter or hateful,
His music will be angry, bitter and resentful.
If a man is in love, his songs
Will be tinged with the melancholy sting of love.
If a man is anxious, he will listen to
Music which resounds with his anxiety.
If a man is rebellious,
His music will be rebellious.

To know the inward heart of man
Listen to their music.
Listen to the melody---
The lyrics betray very little.
Rather, to sing a sad song with joyful lyrics,
The soul is still sad.
To sing of an anxious heart and its bitter loves,
If the song is at peace, so is the heart at rest.

I have listened to many melodies
And they have always imparted 
The true meaning of my soul.

42. The Statutes of Omri

"O, my child, given for a gay
"Life here upon the earth.
"For, I hate my child more than I;"
Cells it is, Cells which one day grow
Into a manchild or womanchild.
"Foresee into the future, this one
"Is hateful, and will cause misery in life.
"For a gay life, I give unto Moloch and Baphomet
"The little infant, whose face will be torn
"And his little hands ripped out of the womb."

"O, my daughter and son, for a gay
"Life here upon the earth,
"I will castrate myself, and rip off my breasts;
"I will place the soil into my chest,
"And I will take my fingers and fashion a loin.
"I will eat up the LORD's people, and throw 
"Them into prisons. I will make them unable to gain
"And unable to work, for I shall devour them
"For my gay little life here upon the Earth."

O, thou Wiseman, have you seen
The city's name? Do you see the LORD's
Name in the book? Whose Firstborn
Was given for our sins? Whose City
Is given to us in our heavenly abode?
Who is the Daughter of Zion
And why is she under siege?
"Because none do uprightly.
"The rich are corrupt, and oppress
"The poor in their wages. 
"The men exchange their manhood
"To make themselves slaves to sin.
"The women tear their breasts in their mourning.
"The children's bodies are given to ointments
"And the righteous and wise are denied
"The bounty of their craft.
"Rather, the people say, 
"'Be a slave like we, who must follow
"The laws of Omri to survive!'"