WELCOMING 2025 by Bhaktimarga Swami

Two thousand twenty-four

A year that we scored

On God’s back side, if any

Problems were plenty

Leaders let us down

How did they get crowned?

We are all to blame

Incompetent with our aim

But enough of that already

Let self-discipline be steady

Rise early in the morning

Giving its much-deserved glory

Lend ears to an uplifting sound

And to promises we are bound

Commitments we make

With strength we won’t break

Let’s look at our health

Stretch life to a good length

With rest, food, and exercise

For these, make no compromise

Be loving social animals

Distancing the lifestyle of cannibals

Gaining that ultimate merit

Rests upon the power of spirit

Cultivate a relation in devotion

With equal portions of wisdom/emotion

And what of non-practitioners?

Respect and compassion come as thickeners

To a recipe that cannot fail

A formula that won’t’ go stale

May hate and fear be non-components of religion

For lack of love is trust in a dead pigeon

If we summon an inner fight

We become a righteous knight

And for personal resolutions?

Let there be realistic expectations

Bite what you can chew

Then the new year is for you

Composed Tuesday, December 24, 2024 in Montreal, Quebec. Photo credit: The Walking Monk website.

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