Life And The Sea

Am I "The Old Man and the Sea" that Hemingway made famous?  Only this cryptic message of the day leaves clues. For those who throw it out there: Bye, bye fishies, I've had my fill up to here with upgrade notices. If you want me, you can find me here! Tired of living with the story of the one that got away, but I'm not your fish market variety kind of guy. Talk to me, I'll listen, reach out, and I'll take your hand, but don't B.S. me, because I'll never understand. You see, a gentleman never expects to play ball on the first at bat, is careful not to try and steal second base when first will do, and most importantly, life is a beautiful thing, and so are all of you, keep on believing because faith always fills your net with what is best for you, not with sharks who only want a piece of you.

And so my story tells no tale of fish, and men, it only reveals the human condition where the single, searching, and broken hearted go to find that lasting relationship.
It is true, I have tried, and failed, and lived to share my words with you, but I find myself in a boat of my own making in which time will tell, and weather foretelling will pronounce my eventual coming home upon the shoreline. The only thing left to tell is the reality of my imagining. And so ask: "Is life but pure fiction, or a story worth a thousand tellings because it's truth is worth the listening?"
God bless
Witt

Sing A New Song

For anyone who has tried, and failed, and gotten back up; life always provides a lesson. To anyone who has lost something precious, whether a loved one, a job, or a possession; there is a reason. And for anyone who works, and dreams, and keeps on living; there is a season. So I hope you enjoy a small slice of time from my lane of life's highway.
Witt

God Knows I Can

Woke up in silence
Woke up in chains
Getting up
To do it all over again
Only to go nowhere
Feeling the pains
Of getting older
But I'm young at heart
And that's all that matters
But there's something missing
Like an echo growing fainter
View from my rear mirror
Getting smaller
Life's simple things
Oh where did they go
Moments in time
When I knew you better
We went out together
To set the world on fire
Now the embers glow
A little less brighter
World a whole lot smaller
Than way back when
But I kept on dreaming
Child in me stopped screaming
For an answer to all life's problems
They just are
And we move on
From wherever we are
To a place we were meant to be
Here and now.

Here and now
Only time will tell
If love endures forever
Or it fades to ashes
Like an old camp fire
Here in my desire
To become more than I am
Just a man
And God knows I can.

Rain on a tin roof
Just more proof
That man and nature
Can make a beautiful thing
Music to my ears
No, it's not progress pounding away
It's just another heart beat
In rhythm together
Like two people
Who find each other
Through storm and strife
That's life
And faith goes hand in hand
Forever like you and me.

Here and now
Only time will tell
If love endures forever
Or it it fades to ashes
Like an old camp fire
Here in my desire
To become more than I am
Just a man
And God knows I can.

D.A. Wittler 17'

Letter To A Former Life

A few thoughts as they occurred to me while being awakened from a sound sleep.
Enjoy
Witt

Dear former life,

I look back now, and realize that no day goes by where I don't think of you; what we had, what we did, the good days, and bad. And I realize that no matter how I tried to navigate this world of contradiction, this brief scenario of happily ever after, I still come to the same conclusion that things happen for a reason.
Our journey begins with a rebellious cry that we would rather not be left out in the cold sterile light of a cruel world of lessons to be learned, skinned up knees, and sorrowful good byes. On the contrary, we would rather stay warm, and safe inside a protected environmental where our every need is supplied by an umbilical of codependence; kept in the dark of ignorance, and unknowns.
But we come to that right of passage through another's labor, and love which go hand in hand with life itself. And so we assume nothing, put aside our innocence, and put on a thicker skin infused with potential, and acceptance of a world full of choices, opportunities, pitfalls, and triumphs. We accumulate knowledge, learn to take our wounds with a grain of salt, and go on living.
And so here I am today looking back, and forth, but not forward, because there is no future without past, no present without realizing one must live each moment as it approaches an inevitable end; so I must make the best of it knowing that living with regret is no way to live for the sins I committed; rather, that faith, and love, and today are all that really matter; and you, my former life was just another right of passage through this world of bright, and ever changing colors.

Sincerely and Respectfully Yours,

A Flawed Human Being

Hope For Little Brothers

I grew up as a little brother in a small quiet town in Northwest Ohio. We grew like the fields of wheat, corn, and soy beans that littered the landscape all around. We learned about life by playing in the creek bed, riding our bicycles from dawn till dusk. We found simple pleasures in games of kick the can, fox, and geese, and basketball on Saturday nights. We made friends for life, became neighbors in faith, and knew the value of loving one another as an unconditional fact of God's grace. And we were big brothers, and sisters too just as those who had come before us for countless generations. We were descendants of immigrants from far, and wide, and we kept our traditions close to our hearts, and still do. And so I pay tribute to one particular little brother I knew, and who now rests in quiet repose amongst the angels; gone, but never forgotten.

Hope For Little Brother
(For Mikey)

He entered life
Blonde hair
Blue eyed
Without despair
With family beside
Played in green fields
Dug in the dirt
Like any boy does
Made many friends
Went to school
Learned a skill
Lived on a whim
Drove the fast lane
Pushed limits
Fell many times
Got back up
Found love to be fleeting
Kindness unyielding
And all the while
There was hope
For little brother
He like no other
Determined to rise
Above the fire
And experienced
That life prevails
In spite of himself
But in the end
He faded quietly
Clinging to faith
 His mother's embrace
Touched the face
Of God eternal
Rest in peace
With the angels
We remember
That hope remains
For little brother.

D.A. Wittler 17'

Lessons From Life

To begin a conversation we must find a line of interest that engages another human being; we call it communication. If we speak too softly, no one will hear, if we speak too boldly, we annoy, but if we do not say anything at all, we fail.

And so I ask myself each time I wish to speak, and hesitate, why? Is it fear, or a feeling of uneasiness that causes my tongue to yield before I leap? But when it comes to mere words upon a page, I have no trouble communicating how I feel, but oh how I long to hear a voice, and see a face, and feel the touch of another's kind embrace. And so I share a part of what I experienced recently through words, and images upon a screen, and what was revealed. Enjoy.
Witt

Somewhere In The Middle

In life
Death never deals
Time never steals
Love never betrays
It always stays
In all things
In all ways
And reveals
Our secret sufferings
So it is
People must deal
People waste time
Denying love
Resisting happiness
But in the aftermath
They must find
A second nature
What is learned
Why we live
How we continue
For death will come
Time will call
And love will show the way
Somewhere in the middle.

D.A. Wittler 17'

Together or Apart?

Don't Go Away


I heard you say
The other day
How you don't feel the same way
When we first met
Times have changed
Hearts wonder
Thoughts go astray
But you've got to remember
Life throws punches
We fall to pieces
And we get back up
Or we stay fixated
On what's gone wrong.

Tomorrow is another day
Glorious morning
To begin again
Forget about yesterday
It's about forgiveness
Will you stay?
Don't go away
And break my heart again.

All in a moment
We get caught up
In dreams, and fantasies
When life is knocking
We don't answer
When we'd rather
Keep sleeping
Away the years
All those tears
We never wanted
But life ain't like that
We face it together
Or go it alone
On our own
Wounded
Like lost souls.

Forgiveness
Forgiveness
It echoes forever
In a guilt ridden heart
Tears us apart
When we don't listen
So go on saying
You could care less
We're a mess
It's all done
No one wins
In the end
Everyone is sorry
But it's too late
And still I say
Don't go away
My darling.

All in a moment
We get caught up
In dreams, and fantasies
When life is knocking
We don't answer
When we'd rather
Keep sleeping
Away the years
All those tears
We never wanted
But life ain't like that
We face it together
Or go it alone
On our own
Wounded
Like lost souls.

D.A. Wittler 17'

Surrendering and Resistance

On Christmas Eve I received a book by Matthew Kelly titled "Resisting Happiness." I have just begun reading, and have found that to seek change in life, one must surrender to a higher power by asking "what shall I do?" This is my own response to this act of faith.

What Shall I Do?


It's been a long hard night
Building up courage
Thinking of you
My last refuge of hope
What shall I do
When morning comes?
No more empty promises
No IOU's
Like I used to do
Never meaning to follow
For the pain is too powerful
Not having you
In my thoughts today.

What shall I do
When confronting myself
Holding accountable
To roots of faith
When I don't want to
Yet knowing full well
I should
And life goes on
In spite of self loathing
Words keep coming
What shall do?
What shall I do?

D.A. Wittler 17'