I think I have somehow managed to jot down nearly 500 poems to date - many while stopped at red lights!
For some reason, the words come easier when I am traveling and, of course, in the shower!
Go figure!
Hope you enjoy these few... and I hope you enter the contest!

WHAT FRIENDS DO

mary jane holt

A stranger by the way

Is all you were that day

But a friend you became

Ere you ever knew my name

The tears I saw you shed

O'er that one who now was dead

Became as my tears, too

For that is what friends do

A BRIEF ETERNITY

mary jane holt

There will never be a day

when I shall not

think of you

long for you

wonder

what your touch

would have been like

ALWAYS

mary jane holt

always

I see you before me

in the mirror of my heart

and you must know

that a part of you

will be with me forever

wherever I go

and in some distant world

some day

there will be a way

for me to show you

how it was your love

that paved the way

for my journey

through here today

how the crossing of our paths

for that brief moment

gave me the courage

to continue

toward the end and beginning

which we shall come to know as one

for that at the end

where eternity begins

I shall be waiting for you

To A Wandering Stranger

mary jane holt

Friend...

Is it that your soul

is but a mirror of my own

or do you see into all hearts

as you see into mine

Is there such transparency

or do you alone know

where to look

what to see

how to understand

where I have come from

who I am

So many years of

wondering     searching       longing...

Yet,   knowing

some blessings to be

too painful to hold

I shall never say

"I found you"

for you were never

meant to be

mine to find

It would seem

there are paths

meant to cross

as ships in the night

their reflections echoing

across dark waters

to become one

for but a fleeting moment

ere continuing on

towards the distant ports

of other lands

and other worlds

where others stand

waiting     looking      longing

for their turn

to know a welcome

if ever so brief

relief from aloneness

I Have Known Love

mary jane holt

I have known Love

and Love knew me

and we were acquainted

intimately

but not for long

only long enough

for me to see

beyond me

and to learn that

only upon letting go

of what we long to hold

so tightly to our breast

... … … only then

shall we know love

as we pass its hardest test

THE UNTAMED HEART

mary jane holt

the untamed heart knows no caution

unable to follow

the beat of the familiar drum

it is born to know freedom

to feel

to live, to laugh

to cry, to sigh

to the beat

to the rhyme, to the rhythm

of love

pure and sweet

the heart untamed

acknowledges restraint

as naught

but an enemy

to the liberty

for which it will die

if need be

FREEDOM

mary jane holt

freedom to fly

into hearts everywhere

is mine

it is a freedom

I take

not lightly

for as the sun shines

and the rain falls

and the seasons

come and go

even so

I shall live

to know

another world

where I shall soar

and attain unto

greater heights

with wings no earthling ever knew

it is what follows

this wonderful freedom

to fly

into hearts everywhere

eternal bliss

ever mine

from here to there

and beyond all time

WISDOM'S OPEN HANDS

mary jane holt

as you held me there in open hands

so near to your heart

you could have draped strong fingers

gently, firmly

around my fragile wings

and held me close forever

in the warmth and safety of your grasp

you knew

I would not have fluttered

or fought for my fading freedom

you knew

how I would have welcomed the shelter

you knew

about the protection that I longed

to know

but you knew, too, that protection

was not my greater need

you could have clipped my wings

and held me close forever

to your heart alone

I would have let you and never struggled

to know freedom's pain again

I would have welcomed

the shield of your hands

around my woundedness

instead you allowed me to rest

and to linger long as I learned to know well

the tenderness found in wise and healing hands

...hands which permitted the mending

of broken places on the wings

that had been teaching me to fly

before the crash

open hands which

gently, firmly reminded me

all the while I nestled there

of the freedom that was mine to reclaim

"some day"

and of the gift that had been given me

to fly into all hearts everywhere

ALWAYS

mary jane holt

always

you are there

moving in and out

of the moods of my life

like shadows on a dark

and windy day

subtly influencing every thought

wrought in the recesses of my mind

in all the corners where I try to hide

to decide alone

what way I shall take...

only to find that my choice

once more

brings me along the same road you are traveling

VICTORIOUS

mary jane holt

it had been a long day

Discouragement knocked

but an exhausted Faith

ignored the sound

so Discouragement knocked again

while Faith continued to ignore him

throughout the almost endless evening

yet Discouragement continued to knock

again and again

and Doubt came to stand by his side

tired and troubled

Faith turned to Hope

who silently appeared

somehow from somewhere

"should we confront them?"

she whispered

as Discouragement and Doubt

continued to knock

louder and louder

Faith and Hope

together turned

--not to open the door--

but to their Father in prayer

and

the long day and long night

saw the morning dawn

to find Peace

make his presence known

and the knocking grew quieter

With the fullness of the new day

came once more

a new knock upon the door

this time

Faith opened it to find

Charity

battle-worn and weary

alone on the porch

victorious

and now abideth

Faith, Hope and Charity

all through the long days and nights of our lives

for Charity never fails and Peace forever

TONIGHT

mary jane holt

Tonight

his memories are of yesterday

of the smell of the sea air

and of the way the silver moonlight

came dancing off the water's edge

to slip through the windows

of their souls

Tonight

he holds her close in his heart

as he once held her close in his arms

and the fragrance of her lingers still

upon his neck

and in his mind

Tonight

in his aloneness

he knows

he will never be alone again

for he shares with her and she with he

a oneness which will always be

forever theirs

Tonight

for a moment

he feels once more

the brief tears she cried

as the sun dawned over yesterday's

long hard never-to-be-forgotten mountain

locking into its place forever

their one eternal night of love

Tonight

as her haunting fragrance

fills the air

he knows that she too remembers

and that no matter where she is

the very essence of all she is

all she ever has been and ever will be

will always be with him

Where Are You, God?

mary jane holt

God?

Yes?

Where are you?

I am here

I cannot see you

I see you

I cannot feel your presence

I am near

I am frustrated, angry and afraid

I can tell

I am worried

I'm not

I have so much I must do!

I am watching

I am tired

I offer rest

I cannot accept just now

I know...

I do not understand

I do

What can I say? What can I do?

I? I?  Must it always be "I"?

I...I mean "we, what must we do?

Anything. Everything. All things. What ever really needs doing.

…....

My child?

Yes?

I am here.

I know.

WHAT ONLY YOU CAN DO

mary jane holt

"and leave undone forever what only you can do"

words which haunt me ever

as daily I am pulled

tossed to and fro

always on the go

demands ... here  /  expectations ... there

so I stand still

though I want to move to somewhere

but where is somewhere?

and why must I go there?

there is so much I want

to do, to say

someday

but when is someday?

and will I know it when it comes?

direction is unclear

a low and winding road beckons

a lovely valley lies below

the ocean calls, the mountains, too

and oh! how I want to go!

but yon path looks smooth and straight...

so, I linger here to await

a word from You

to join the crowd seems right

when "they say" we can win if I join the fight

and perhaps we could win a battle, maybe two

but war will wage on

and what will it all matter

when I face You

if I have left undone forever

what only I could do?

DON’T BOX ME IN

mary jane holt

Don’t box me in

don’t draw me lines

I shall step over

I shall break through

knowing

sudden death

to be better

than suffocation

Henceforth

mary jane holt

Henceforth, I shall value only that which I can take with me when I die

and that is only what I give away

FASCINATION

mary jane holt

Fascination stopped to visit today

my station

in life

lifted for a while

by the rank and style of such a royal visitor

A New Song

mary jane holt

I think my soul wrote a song

I didn't record yesterday

for today I'm humming

a new tune

and

truth and beauty are applauding

there's not enough of me
mary jane holt

there's not enough time in the day
to know all the people
I want to know
to say all the things
I want to say
to write the songs
and
to hear the music play
to the tune of tomorrow
and
of yesterday
but
I shall continue
and
I shall live
and
I shall give myself away
for
there's not enough of me
to keep me to myself

I WATCHED THE WATERMELON GROW
mary jane holt

To study life
or
about life
was the question
I posed me

The doorbell rang
a neighbor stayed
my son played
I watched
the watermelon grow
and
the biggest potatoes
I ever saw

then I climbed a tree
and laughed in glee
all the while
I studied life
and life studied me

You Are Somebody
mary jane holt

I don't have any better sense
than to just go barging in
to people's lives when they're hurting
'cause I've been there
and I've wondered if anybody cared
so when I care
I want to show it
or how'll they know it?
Oh, sure!

I know there's always prayer
and I could just pray
that God would meet the need
and heed the cry of each aching heart
and do His part
to make it all better
and I could ask Him to send somebody
to feed or clothe or comfort
but then there was that time
I asked Him to do just that for them
and he said to me
"You Are Somebody"

The Front Porch Light
mary jane holt

Oh, the waves are green and the waves are long
and the cold wind blows so lonely at night
while all seems so calm in the light of day
like earth's inequities can be made right
but when the sun sets in uncertainty
and the dark winds blow with power and might
then one longs for home and the peace that comes
with just one glimpse of the front porch light

I’M HAPPY
mary jane holt

I’m happy
and it’s so hard to write
when I’m happy
‘cause I have to be still to write
and it’s hard to be still
when there are flowers to smell
and songs to sing
and
life’s like that
with butterflies all around
when I’m happy
and
all the world’s my stage
and the birds sing with me
as if their cue is mine
and
we are one
‘cause their song IS mine
when I’m happy
and
sad gets put on hold

ONLY LOVE SHALL REMAIN
mary jane holt

Somewhere
beyond today
out on the edge of tomorrow
oblivious
to all my yesterdays
I shall stand
with but a faint memory
of today's pain
for it, too, shall fade
and only Love shall remain

In Her Embrace
mary jane holt

in her embrace
I sigh
inside I die
for I know anger
and she knows me
my constant companion
she
but I shall be
one day free
of the prison
her hands hath made
because I stayed
deceitful her ways
necessary she says
to protect me...

I'd as soon be dead
for in her arms I die
a little each day
her chains choking me
cutting off my breath
like death
though I do not forget
how once I sighed
in her embrace

IT MATTERS NOT
mary jane holt

I read not what the world expects
and write naught for another’s praise
It matters not
if my pen’s stroke doth an eyebrow raise
I’ll giggle
I condescend to no man’s ways
and always will follow my heart
it matters not
if, at times, I do not know where to start
I’ll wait
I seek not to follow the crowd
for following breeds vanity
It matters not
if only a lonely bird sings for me
I’ll listen
I trust but the one God I know
and hold I tight unto His hand
It matters not
if others doubt and do not understand
I’ll trust
I act not on another’s faith
Nor can another act on mine
It matters much
that each must find his own faith
in his own time

THE PRICE
mary jane holt

there is a price one pays for fame
a cost -- be it small or great
to have a recognizable name
to aspire to heights unknown
to never stop
until the summit of each mountain
is claimed -- and to look down again
is not all it’s cracked up to be
for along the way, a while ago
back at some near-forgotten bend
there was a little house by the side of the road
where stayed one who lived in the shadows
and longed to be my friend

but I lingered not,
for I had a ways to go ere the day should end
and now I cannot go back
oh! the fields lie painted with rainbow colors
before me -- and breathtakingly beautiful
is the expanse of the heavens I now can see
and fulfilled I should be
my promise to me unbroken
but somewhere just down the hill
and back a ways
my heart stayed
and
it was a high price I paid

Timin’
mary jane holt

I don't understand
when they say they waitin' for your timin'
I know they say they prayin' for me, Lord
but it feels like I just be in need of a hug
like the rug's bein' pulled out from under me
and I'm fallin' and I sure could use a hand
I'd just 'preciate it so much if somebody'd come a calling
but they all just seem to be a stallin'
and I don't know how long I can keep on a livin'
if they keep on a waitin' for your timin'
instead of just reachin' out and helpin' me
cause I need help now Lord
I need a friend real bad
I don't remember no beginnin' and can't see no end
I'm a feelin' tired and hungry and lonely and cold
and I ain't got no understandin'
while I sets here a shiverin' is this damp, dark abode
that's gettin' darker and darker
no I don't understand why
they say they still a waitin' for your timin'
I don't understand, Lord
alls I know is I'm cold and it's just a gettin' colder

My Way
mary jane holt

‘tis good to know
what is proper!
not so much
for the doing
as for the knowing
for I shall
do this thing
my way

THROWING CAUTION TO THE WIND
mary jane holt

Throwing all caution to the wind
I let my words fall where they may
I let my heart write what it would say
To people everywhere
Who long to know they are not alone
Even when loved ones are suddenly gone
Hopes crushed and dreams shattered
Though all that ever mattered
Lies broken at their feet
I hope my words will fall there, too
Like rose petals of promise
Whose fragrance wafts upward
Into the recesses of the soul
Which would refuse to face another day
If it were not for these words
My heart so longs to say
God's grace is sufficient
His love everlasting
His way not always our way
Is what I would say
To that one who fears to face tomorrow

Were God's judgments not tempered
With unending mercy
None could withstand
The touch of His hand
But His hand reaches down
Not to hurt or destroy
Because of the anger I know He must feel
Since our mistakes and failures are so very real
Instead
His hand reaches out to you and to me
To guide us gently
When there's not enough light to see
The path which lies before us
Or glimpse the goal that's just ahead
When there is not enough faith to envision
A victory on some distant shore
When there is only anger and anguish and pain
When it seems there is no way to win
And nothing to gain
By continuing to trudge along in this world
Then
That hand
His hand
Reaches out to touch His own
And with a gentle nudge that's His alone
He turns His children toward the Morning Light
With a firm assurance once again
That the darkness they have known for so long
Will soon know its appointed end
Indeed

I must throw all caution to the wind
And let my pen fall where it may
For in the end
I, too, find hope
In what my heart does long to say.

Is God Enough?
mary jane holt

You may ask me if God is "enough?"
I shall smile as I answer...
"Quite enough," I shall say
The road may be long and weary
But He stays by our side day after day
You see, He has traveled to every place
There is no destination we reach
where He has not been before
Every temptation that we ever face
He goes through it with us...
He walks first through every door

He has never turned His back on us
He holds our hand

Through sorrow, pain, and shame...
I admit... His face we cannot always see
But the great "I AM" is true to His name
I KNOW, for whenever I pause to look back
Coincidences beyond imagination

Mark my path and His presence is a fact
Far beyond Life's most complex explanations!

Cry Not For Me
mary jane holt

Cry not for me in the dark hour
for like the window of my youth
death shall be but a window
through which I shall climb at the appointed time
so that I might slip away on my continued quest
for knowledge of that One I first sought to know so long ago
Think not that death's momentary darkness shall defeat you.
Victory will be yours, too
For, somewhere, the stars shine and I among them shall shine for you
and I shall help to light the night
for you to see how to come to me when it is right for you to follow.
So, fear not the days ahead;
simply trust that it was right for me to go before you
and know
that I shall wait on the other side
with arms open wide to welcome you
to bid you enter into the eternal glory
that is ours to share with Him and them…
forever and ever and for all time!

I Have Known Love
mary jane holt

I have known Love
and Love knew me
and we were acquainted
intimately
but not for long
only long enough
for me to see
beyond me
and to learn that
only upon letting go
of what we long to hold
so tightly to our breast
...only then
shall we know love
as we pass its hardest test

ECSTACY
mary jane holt

Like a bird born to fly
in the great expanse of all the sky
my soul
knows an ecstasy which knows no control
when I’m with You
no boundary
only joy
as an all encompassing Oneness
with all that is forever
is mine
as I am Yours and You are mine
for I love you, Lord!

DON’T BOX ME IN
mary jane holt

Don’t box me in
don’t draw me lines
I shall step over
I shall break through
knowing
sudden death
to be better
than suffocation

HIS CAPACITY FOR CARING
mary jane holt

Contemplating
his capacity for caring
I wonder
if lately
his senses
have become dulled
where once there was fertile soil and flowers bloomed
now - cares of the world
have grown up
like thorns
to choke
the fragile flowers
…even their fragrance
lingers no more and the air is still.

Some Days
mary jane holt

Some days
I think of you
and breathe
a prayer
that God
will keep you
all days
in His care
and He remembers
though I forget
because He is God
and I remember
that His love for you
surpasses any I ever knew
though
some days
I still think of you

FASCINATION
mary jane holt

Fascination stopped to visit today
my station
in life
lifted for a while
by the rank and style of such a royal visitor

In the Light of Eternity
mary jane holt

It is when friends fail,
dreams fade,
or a life-threatening illness strikes,
that the reality of God’s presence
and His willingness to be involved
in every detail of our lives becomes apparent.
That reality gets one thru the dark nights,
filled with loneliness
fear
confusion
anger
and
pain
until the morning comes.

Then in the light of His presence
all other realities grow dim and lose their control
as an awareness of the eternal takes hold.
For indeed, what does it all matter in the light of eternity?

FREEDOM
mary jane holt

freedom to fly
into hearts everywhere
is mine
it is a freedom
I take
not lightly
for as the sun shines
and the rain falls
and the seasons
come and go
even so
I shall live
to know
another world
where I shall soar
and attain unto
greater heights
with wings
no earthling
ever knew
it is what follows
this wonderful freedom
to fly
into hearts everywhere
eternal bliss
ever mine
from here to there
and beyond all time

i have danced with death
mary jane holt

I have danced with death
and flirted with dying
many times i have done this
and walked away
after each encounter
- more free to be me -
a stronger woman
happier
more alive
more aware
more free of all the walls
i had foolishly imposed
on myself
in times past
necessary walls
then
unnecessary now
that i have danced
with death
many times

Alone In The Storm
mary jane holt

I have felt alone in the storm.

I have known the paralysis of fear

and in its grip heard the reassuring voice

of the fearless One whisper softly,

"Lo, I am with you always."

I have known the fury of defeat

and in such knowledge, heard the voice of victory

call calmly to me from the next room,

"Lo, I am with you always."

I have known fierce crippling pain

and in the midst, heard indescribable compassion

in the voice of One whose understanding made it bearable,

"Lo, I am with you always."

I have known bleak despair

and in its hold heard One whose Father once turned away

speak gently to remind me of His continuing presence,

“Lo, I am with you always."

I have known a cold darkness

and in the black mist heard the voice of the Light of the world

burst forth with a promise of gladness and guidance

"Lo, I am with you always.”

I have known anger

And in its prison heard the tender voice of One

Who knows me so well

Who understands my thoughts from afar

Who knows my downsitting and my uprising

Who is intimately acquainted with all my ways

Who sees my going out and my coming in

Who scrutinizes my path and my lying down

Whose presence is too wonderful to proclaim

Whose existence cannot be explained

One Who eases in and out of the avenues of my life

as the wind that blows, permitting me to know not

from whence it comes or where it goes...

I only know that it moves my hair and cools my cheek

and continuously whispers ever so softly and tenderly,

"Lo, I have been, I am…

and I will be with you always even unto the end of the world!"

I have felt alone in the storm, but I never was...

© Mary Jane Holt

I WANT TO GO HOME
mary jane holtA New Song
mary jane holtPerspective
mary jane holtI LIVED
mary jane holt