The Frisbee Catching Dog

I wrote this in September 1979 for my loving and faithful dog Nugget, the best dog in the world. He was my best friend for 12 years...


He certainly is a lazy ole fella,
This friend of mine.
Some say, "He's just a dumb animal"
I don't really mind.
Besides, I know him better than anyone.

Sure he's lazy,
Aren't all his kind?
He's a dog, part husky,
Their coats aren't fine.
And I know him better than anyone...

Don't let his laziness fool you though.
He's merely waiting for the time,
When I take him out,
Turn him loose,
And let that saucer fly.

For he's the Frisbee Catching Dog,
A legend in his time,
An honest-to-God celebrity,
With the ability to climb...

...high above friends and foes,
'till soaring disc he finds,
Then gradually to earth he floats,
then turning on a dime...

...back to me he brings the disc,
At my feet, he lets it lie.
Then sits and shines, as if to say,
"Come on, just one more time?"

So I grab the plate,
Cock my arm,
At once he's off he's off his behind.
There it goes,
The wind's got it now,
But where's that mutt of mine?

Oh well, like I said,
This ole fella's past his prime,
He's the laziest frisbee catching dog,
The world will ever find.
And of course, I know him better than anyone...


Copyright © May 2009
Kevin Mooney

kmm074
090179

The Human Zoo

These are the Lions and Tigers,
These are the Catholics and Jews.

Imagine a human menagerie,
Where the stock have no freedom to choose,
Where thoughts are controlled,
One does as he's told,
Imagine a Human Zoo.

One's world exists in a room,
Detached from the world outside,
Completely alone,
A cubical home,
In the zoo there is no place to hide.

They can be dangerous creatures,
They'll rebel the first chance they get.
They're let out in the sun,
At the point of a gun,
Don't feed them, you might get bit.

Their gates are closed to the public,
Inside great towers abound,
The enclosure's immense,
A barbed-wire fence,
The herd has limited ground.

They're by far the most popular exhibit,
Manifested for public view,
Men peer in the cells,
And see themselves,
Confined in a Human Zoo.


Copyright © May 2009
Kevin Mooney

An April Psalm

Another April is upon us.

Consider these events and what might be next...

History's inscribed with painful regrets,
Time-stamped reminders we'd just soon forget.
Life changing moments wrought with misery,
Sober atonement's to God's apathy.


Consider this sequence of mid-April dates,
A 2-week stretch worth scholarly debates,
A series of occurrences without common thread,
A collection of tragedies riddled with dead.


April 12, 1861


A war between brothers, a nation divided,
The question of Slavery, debate undecided,
A Fort's forced surrender, human dignity fought for,
The anguished overture to The American Civil War.


April 12, 1945


Our 32nd President, nationally adored,
Died in office, the free world mourned.
The most tenured Chief in U.S. history,
Distinction was Franklin's last legacy.


On April 14, 1865


While the nation reeled to get back on it's feet,
Abe Lincoln was shot in his balcony seat.
"Sic Semper Tyrannis", his assailant cried,
"He belongs to the ages", a martyr had died.


April 14th, 1912


A ship's maiden voyage, an unsinkable fate,
A runaway iceberg too little, too late.
A Titantic virgin, high society's new rave,
1500 passengers sent to icy hallowed graves.


April 15, 1986,


Middle Eastern tension and territorial defense,
A Berlin club bombed, a dire consequence,
Libya then shelled in retaliation,
60 lives felled, without warning or provocation.


On April 16th, 2007,


A serene college campus in a rural southern state,
32 died at the hands of a class-mate,
Virginia Tech ravaged by a rampaged massacre,
Blacksburg's savage shooting disaster.


April 17, 1961


At the Cold War's peak, a secret coup spoiled,
A surprise invasion to take Cuban soil.
Kennedy's embarrassing political low,
A Bay of Pigs and failed Castro overthrow.


April 18, 1906


A west coast quake, San Francisco torn,
San Andreas faltered in the early morn.
The city shook while most people slept,
3000 died, scores left bereft.


April 19, 1775


Sovereignty sought, a new flag unfurled,
Red Coats and Minutemen, insults hurled.
A Lexington Common to settle the score,
A single shot heard, a Revolutionary War.


April 19, 1993


A poorly planned siege in a small Texas town,
An Adventist's forged stand on Koreshian ground.
Waco's Davidians, FBI, ATF,
82 perished, most burned to death.


April 19, 1995


Oklahoma, City, the last place you'd expect,
A rental truck blast, sheered lack of respect.
Alfred P. Murray's face blown to smithereens,
A day care center and heart-wrenching scenes.


April 20, 1999


Two young gunman arrived at school late,
Their intent malicious, their motive pure hate.
A rapid fire stroll in armored disguise,
12 Columbine kids, a teacher victimized.


April 20, 2010


An oil spill disaster beyond compare,
A world engulfed in ecological despair.
Wildlife and lives scarred thereafter,
The BP Deepwater Horizon disaster.


April 27, 2011


A US, mid-west tornadic storm,
Millions of lives irrevocably torn.
God's epic wrath funneled from above,
Record tornadoes, lost homes and ones loved.



These world changing dates seem random at first glance,
But placed on a timeline they're suddenly enhanced.
I only named some, those most can relate,
There are many others that fall in these dates.
A coincidence, perhaps, they happened when they did.
But consider they're significance, the possibilities unsaid.


Do worldly events occur randomly?
Or are we all tokens of some sovereign monopoly?
Are our future's staged, fates foretold?
Or are we engaged in some Divine stranglehold?


Is the future dictated by events from the past?
Outcomes determined when calendar's cast?
Are questions answered before they are asked?
How long will God's mercy eventually last?


If there's no purpose to one's life at all,
Would there be a need for a crystal ball?
Existence is tenuous, the future unclear.
Will God's beckon call be the last voice we hear?


History's defined in both time and existence,
Misery reminds us just how fragile life is.
The future's traversed with blind trepidation.
With mysteries cursed beyond Deprecation.


Church bells chime together consistent,
While rivers wind forever persistent.
Mankind's time is measured and imminent.
Lives intertwine then are gone in an instant.

  Copyright © July 2009Kevin Mooney

kmm059

070109

From Manger To Cross

Once upon a time, many years ago,
A very special child was received.
He was born in a manger with no place to go,
His future and purpose preconceived.

The birth was foretold, by generations old,
In books and psalms from afar.
Those that bore witness had come to behold,
A miracle proclaimed by a star.

Man's future lay, swaddled in hay,
His mission, transgressions to bear.
Surrounded by animals, shepherds and Kings,
With good tidings and gifts brought to share.

Do you suppose that there were those,
That knew who this child would soon be?
The living word, the one that arose,
Sent here to save you and me.

That night in a stable, a child proved able,
To inspire all nations to pray.
A story was cast, one sure to last,
It was proclaimed a glorious day.

Years went past but few people asked,
What became of that fortunate Son?
A man came forth and performed great tasks,
That inspired and astounded everyone.

As it turned out, many learned about,
His ability to heal and foresee.
His fan base grew and many soon knew,
That this was the child of prophecies.

He taught how to give, to love and forgive,
Performed a miracle or two.
He set an example for people to live,
Through suffrage, abuse and solitude.

One day a friend, one loyal to the end,
Pointed him out in a crowd.
Those that he served had forsaken him,
Admonished and cursed him out loud.

He was sentenced die, for no reason why,
He carried his burden upon his back.
His head was adorned with a crown of thorns,
He never complained of what he lacked.

He struggled at times, but managed to climb,
The hill where his cruel fate had led.
He was nailed and tied for committing no crime,
People watched as his hands and feet bled.

They lifted him there, up into the air,
On a cross firmly fixed in the ground.
All he could bear was to suffer and stare,
As onlookers gathered all around.

Many souls left, bereaved and bereft,
Unable to watch or comprehend,
Those that stayed, silently prayed,
That his suffering would eventually end.

When his time came, he offered no blame,
He asked only his Father forgive.
"They knew not their sins or where to begin,
To atone for the lives that they live".

As he died, all mankind cried,
At that moment it began to sink in.
This was that child that years ago lie,
Swaddled with the burden of sin.

That hallowed day, far, far, away,
On the eve of man's eternal cost.
Was when it began, the first Christmas day,
Jesus journey from manger to cross.



Copyright © December 2009
Kevin Mooney