Our Needs (poem) by John Herlihy on AuthorsDen

Our Needs
by John Herlihy → (All Poetry by John Herlihy)
Saturday, May 22, 2021 Rated "G" by the Author.

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-- Our Needs -- John Herlihy Our needs stand at attention before us, Always making themselves plain. No matter what our needs truly want, They are always difficult to explain. How can we ever give account, For our implicit need to be loved? Our intimate passions, limitless to count, Until a form of mercy descends from above Why do we always insist, Upon our need to be right. The dread of being wrong does persist, A question of honor that feels like night. The unbridled urge to conquer goes untamed, A willingness the entire world to ravage. Our lack of introspection not to be blamed, As the need for absolute power makes us savage. Shy people suffer the need of timidity, The fear of ridicule or failure to expose. They prefer silence, wrapped in misery, With frank unwillingness anyone to oppose. Then there are the bold and the brave, Their needs also need to be expressed. Deep-seeded courage the world to save, An impulse difficult for them to suppress. Some people have a compulsive need to talk, While others feel content to remain silent. The aggressive among us ready others to stalk, The independent among us always self-reliant. A few have the need to control and dominate, Other people’s strength makes them feel unhappy. Whereas their own insecurity has them subjugate, Any good will or mercy that may make them happy. We try to satisfy needs from the outside, Thinking solutions to our problem lie beyond. When the answer may lie quietly inside, Patiently awaiting the moment we may respond. - - - - - - I (c) John Herlihy 16 July 2020

Reviewed by Jms Bell

Reviewed on June 9, 2021

CERTAINLY, BYPASSING THOSE BASIC NEEDS FOR SURVIVAL, AS YOU HAVE DONE AND ADDRESSING THE MORE COMPLEX NEEDS, THAT IS... THE EMOTIONAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL NEEDS...THIS IS DIFFICULT. BECAUSE WE ARE SO COMPLEX AND HARDLY KNOW OURSELVES. WHY EVEN THE BIBLE DECLARES THAT WE DON'T EVEN KNOW WHAT WE SHOULD PRAY FOR. SO, ALL I CAN SAY IS...THANK GOD FOR HIS SPIRIT THAT SEES ALL OUR NEEDS AND MAKES INTERCESSION FOR US. MY LIFE IS IN HIS VERY CAPABLE HANDS...TRA..LA..LA..LA..LA! AND I'M SO GLAD ABOUT IT, AMEN! GREAT POETRY, LOVE THE STYLE. THANKS FOR SHARING. LOVE, BLESSINGS AND FAITH...HIS+INSPIRATIONS

Reviewed by Richard Cederberg

Reviewed on May 22, 2021

I implicitly believe that the Creator puts in all humans the need to be loved and respected. Sadly, it's what most humans fight the hardest for. And the need to be 'right' is perfectly fine as long as it remains centered on you making the right choices for yourself. As Marcus Aurelius Antoninus said: "Very little is needed to make a happy life; it is all within yourself; in your way of thinking." There is some wisdom in that. Enjoyed your thoughts. Thanks. rlc

Reviewed by Ronald Hull

There is nothing like a deep-freeze with four days without power to tell us what we really need� Air to breathe for those who are on the electric ventilating machines, clean water to drink or die within four days, shelter to keep us warm without any external warmth like our dependable furnaces, and food, both to raise our spirits and fuel our internal furnaces to keep us alive in the coldest of circumstances. Oh yes, without a loving person nearby to help provide what one cannot provide, oneself, fear, followed by despair, and death would occur quite rapidly.

You write of the normal needs of modern man where basic needs have receded into the background that are not noticed amid all the wants that we now perceive as needs. The so-called need to reproduce should be thoroughly examined before we over populate ourselves.

Ron

Reviewed by Odin odin@aflx.com

This poem is like a subtext to Zen ideology. Want, along with attachment, is the primary source of all unhappiness. Were, as you eloquently point out, humankind needs to understand and embrace their needs, not wants. And, when all is said and done, when we realize that most needs are within (you last stanza)not without, we will truly be on a path that will not lead us to a cliff. Well penned, as usual.