-- What I Chose to Believe–

John Herlihy

The fabric of our lives uniquely threaded,

With what we may choose to believe.

How all our actions may be regretted,

If no clear beliefs are there to conceive.

We all make choices based on belief,

Even not believing be a kind of choice.

We choose our path for some relief,

Some way to make our hearts rejoice.

Always try to fulfill my promises,

Always try to do whatever I say,

Always keep the trust of a secret,

Always to follow the straight way,

This is what I choose to believe.

Never be afraid to make a decision,

To accept the fact that I did wrong,

To know when I can do things better,

Listen gently to someone else’s song,

This is what I choose to believe.

To make a plan and see it fulfilled,

Let the truth outweigh white lies,

To follow thru on whatever I willed,

Let acts proclaim what intention hides,

This is what I choose to believe.

To listen as I wish to be listened to,

To speak clearly some meaning to convey,

Keep silence when silence is called for,

If another needs comforting, for them pray.

This is what I choose to believe.

To focus my mind when it runs wild,

To let emotions speak from the heart,

To remember the pure spirit of a child,

To love others with a tenderness mild,

This is what I choose to believe.

To try to recall the one thing needful,

Remember the essential when we forget,

To forgo any despair by remaining hopeful,

To take care what we be prone to neglect,

This is what I choose to believe.

Finally, belief in an All-Wise Superior Being,

A conscious universe born of the Holy Spirit.

Its power and purpose, all-Knowing, all-Seeing,

Infinite souls as eternal stars beaming.

There you have it, other beliefs left unsaid,

No one can deny we all choose to believe,

Believe in something until our hearts bled,

Believe in things we can hardly conceive,

Life’s mystery woven by this unique thread.

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Copyright © John Herlihy

Monday 11 April 2022