What’s that I hear
Laughter & music
Coming from my kitchen
They’re dancing
A tango in my my kitchen
Danced by my kids & wife
What a crazy, happy life
I’m smitten, their smiles broad
And I got the best one
There’s craziness in this house
Fun is a natural given
As a tango is danced in my kitchen
Hips sway, hair flies
Feet moving here to there
To everywhere
They’re dancing a tango in my kitchen
Before school starts
Dancing and singing at 7AM
Everybody into it even I am

#Day19

Sleep eludes me

Can’t keep my eyes shut

Can’t escape my work

Can’t escape my home

Can’t escape my thoughts

With cortisol levels off the chain

– stress is becoming my 2nd name

Shackled by my brain

I get no rest

Everything feels like a test

My Patience wears thin

I beg for sleep

-is the cousin to death….

#Day17

In a crowded NYC bistro
She sits by the window
People watching
I’m watching her
It’s warm inside
Umbrellas walk by
There’s a buzz in the air
The chatter of the crowd
Talking to one another
& we’re together
Latte, a Bloody Mary, Over-well please
The crowd speaks
Listens
To our hearts beating as one
In a NYC bistro
Just like this one
We fell in love
Sitting by the window
We bared our souls
& saw in our eyes
What was, is meant to be
Promised we wouldn’t talk about the kids
Just us
But they make us
Fall in love again & again
We begin to walk in the rain
Gaining time being together
Jumping over puddles we giggle
A leap of faith
Into each other arms

#Day16

I think of you
I think of me
I think of us
I think of family
yours & mine
I think as one
I think of growth
Tears, sweat, laughter & success
Yours & mine
I think of us
I think of one
I think of footsteps walking, running, trotting
Moving with God
I think of us.

#Day15
Poem

Yeah you know what it is
But I ain’t saying it
Borough so much pain
Just by saying it
Too much hurt & suffering
Passed down innocently
By father to son, mother to daughter
We’ve been indoctrinated to repeat it
From the radio to TV shows
Tshirts to sweat pants
Whole groups labeled as its ambassadors
Lives lost massacred
Eliminated
Because of race, color, sex, or religion
Not mine
Let’s find a new creed
And stand against it
4 little letters that could’ve meant so much more
Let’s embrace its opposite
Remove it from our tongues
Put away our guns
And
Stop the haters from hating & drinking that haterade
Stop hate
Make Love

It’s been about a year that I personally have worked to remove it from my vocabulary. Take a minute to notice how many things, people, or situations you may use it in. From Justin Bierber’s latest song, to traffic, or something at work. What about around you – start listening for it – you’ll be surprised how much h_te is in the air. Now let’s work towards changing it.

#Day14

Feeling rushed
I sit down to write this for like the 15th time
Has passed
Rituals missed and disrespected
Didn’t follow my method to get the one thing done that pushes & pulls me
Forward
I move on
Distracted by the possibilities of what’s possible
I’m on a mission to gain back my focus
Realizing that there’s a battle being fought for my attention
Attention Deficit Disorder
A.D.D.
Adding to the complexity
I look to simplify
Busy becoming a dirty word

Isabella & I made this poem up while on our way to PreK. Wow how time flies. Seems like she was 5 years old just yesterday. Last night at dinner it came back to me & as soon as I started reciting it Isabella jumped in. Amber & Matthew did too 🙂 it was how they all learned the seasons. I can see it them vividly spreading their little arms wide like a tree, their sing song way of reciting it, & our favorite part of making the sound of the wind. So glad I remembered it…

“Trees Standing Tall” by Robin & Isabella Estevez

Trees are standing tall
Reaching for the sky
With their branches spread wide
And the wind blowing by
Whoooosh
In Spring they all blossom
In Summer they gives us shade
In Fall they change colors
And
In Winter they blow away
Whoooosh

I’m the kid who grew up to be

A father of 3 – awesome kids

Who hasn’t quite figured out

How he lucked out with such a great wife

Such a great life

I’m the kid who grew up

Between the aisles

Stocking up cans filled with dreams

I reached higher

S-T-R-E-T-C-H-I-N-G

To reach the top

Son of a shoe shiner

Who grew up behind the counter

Working iron hours

From the time the iron gates went up until they came down

Working side by side with my father & siblings

Starting from nothing

Building the foundation

I’m

R-E-A-C-H-I-N-G

To make something

That takes me over the top

Puts me in a new space

Level up

Into a new place

Come on lets set the pace

Face the challenge

New skills needed

Acquired

New capabilities

Required

Same work ethic obtained as a kid

Helps the man with the plan

Get the New deals coming

My mind is drifting
Skid marks mark up my life
To fast to furious
How long will I last in the fast lane
I’m speeding up
Trying to outwit the devil
But he’s right there with me
Riding shotgun
Egging me on
To drift into his hands & join his grand plan
So I take my foot off the gas pedal
I coast to a stop
Regain my mental level
Faith restored
With God on my side
I jump out that ride
Mind focused – Never been a drifter
I’ve been gifted with self mastery
With a purpose that’s definitive
Napolean Hill was right
I would outwit the devil

Inspired by the book “Outwitting the Devil” by Napolean Hill http://www.amazon.com/Outwitting-Devil-Secret-Freedom-Success/dp/1454900679

#Day10

The page is blank
Ink flows through the pen onto the paper
Letter by letter
Forming words that fill the page
Forever changing the look & feel
Where once there was nothing
Now there are letters that make up words forming sentences
Developing stories & ideas
To be read
Forever changing what once was and now becomes
Text

#Day9