ODE TO A MADMAN
The cunning words, that rings so true, bring me but dark memories,
From a time and a place, best forgotten, yet always, just beneath,
The surface of a black night, filled with anguish and loss,
Of fear, trepidation, horror, not of this world, not now, I pray,
but then it crawled into being, by what force, I do not know.
They say, nonsense, but it lives, somewhere, now,
To come again, to crush, destroy, all the goodness
The world has ever known. The pinnacle has arrived,
Once again, we face, the face of evil incarnate, we see it daily,
But a few do ever acknowledge what we see, we feign ignorance,
Deny what we see, yet, it creeps to our door,
Seeps under the floor, the poison of its words,
It lies so beautifully. ~ Karen D. Dowdall
WORDS
Words are singularly the most powerful force available to humanity. We can choose to use this force constructively with words of encouragement, or destructively using words of despair. Words have energy and power with the ability to help, to heal, to hinder, to hurt, to harm, to humiliate and to humble.
~Yehuda Berg
https://www.brainyquote.com/authors/yehuda-berg-quotes
ANGER
Hatred is corrosive of a person’s wisdom and conscience; the mentality of enmity can poison a nation’s spirit, instigate brutal life and death struggles, destroy a society’s tolerance and humanity, and block a nation’s progress to freedom and democracy.
~Liu Xiaobo
https://www.brainyquote.com/search_results?q=Liu+Xiaobo+Hatred
LOVE
Love is friendship that has caught fire. It is quiet understanding, mutual confidence, sharing and forgiving. It is loyalty through good and bad times. It settles for less than perfection and makes allowances for human weaknesses.
~Ann Landers
https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/ann_landers_143025
PEACE (AND LOVE)
Peace is the beauty of life. It is sunshine. It is the smile of a child, the love of a mother, the joy of a father, the togetherness of a family. It is the advancement of man, the victory of a just cause, the triumph of truth.
`Menachem Begin
https://www.brainyquote.com/authors/menachem-begin-quotes
SADNESS
Even a happy life cannot be without a measure of darkness, and the word happy would lose its meaning if it were not balanced by sadness. It is far better to take things as they come along with patience and equanimity.
~Carl Jung
https://www.brainyquote.com/search_results?q=Carl+Jung
Bad things do happen; how I respond to them defines my character and the quality of my life. I can choose to sit in perpetual sadness, immobilized by the gravity of my loss, or I can choose to rise from the pain and treasure the most precious gift I have – life itself.
~Walter Anderson
https://www.brainyquote.com/authors/walter-anderson-quotes
FEAR
I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.
~Nelson Mandela
https://www.brainyquote.com/authors/nelson-mandela-quotes
Happiness
There is only one happiness in this life: to love and to be loved.
George Sand
https://www.brainyquote.com/authors/george-sand-happiness
Happiness is not something you postpone for the future; it is something you design for the present.
Jim Rohn
Https://www.brainyquote.com/authors/jim-rohn-happiness
Pen & Paper 
Awesome post! Yes, an ode to the world’s tyrants. Well said, Karen
LikeLiked by 1 person
Virginia’s state motto of Sic semper tyrannis seems very ironic in these troubled times we live in..
LikeLiked by 2 people
Yes, it certainly appears to be ironic. What concerns me most is the lemming approach by so many people who fear this debased, cruel, ignorant, coward, with nothing but vengeance in this heartless thug that keeps him in a live. Fortunately, hate, vengeance, and cruelty, consumes from the inside and thus, he will not thrive for long. I just see it as it is, at least from my point of view. Karen 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
I agree that hatred does poison the hater from the inside out, but not before a lot of innocent people are hurt by it. Cold comfort, sadly.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Liz, yes, cold comfort indeed and yes, I fear that many more people will be hurt by his actions. Karen 😦
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you Kathy Lauren. I am so glad you liked it. Karen 🙂
LikeLike
It reminds me of an odious politician whose unequalled evil is based on his own needs not others. Beautifully written Karen.
Huge Hugs
LikeLiked by 2 people
David, thank you so much. Your approval means so much. I thought I had gone a bit over the top, but I couldn’t do less. Karen 🙂
LikeLike
David, thank you so much. It is not easy to take a stand, but I had no choice. My conscious could not stand by and say nothing. He is an odious politician as you say, whose unequaled evil as poisoned the well. It is truly sad to have to acknowledge the underbelly of racism and white supremacy in America. Will America ever be what we once thought it was?
LikeLiked by 1 person
At this moment in time, it seems doubtful. When I read your poem, this quote came to mind: “Power corrupts; absolute power corrupts absolutely.”
LikeLiked by 2 people
Yes, that is one of my favorite quotes that has real world consequences as we both know. I hope for the best as we move forward toward November 6, 2020. Karen 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
I will definitely be getting out to vote!
LikeLike
Karen,
You have been promoted at the Go Dog Go Cafe today!
Stephen
LikeLiked by 1 person
Stephen, I am honored! Thank you! Karen 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
You are very welcome.
LikeLike
Karen, thank you for this excellent post. It is disturbing and absolutely needed.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you, Professor French, I am so glad that you approve. 🙂
LikeLike