TO ST. ANDREW THE APOSTLE

Your mariner’s heart hungers to know the truth,

  And your saltwater soul is satisfied with John’s words;

But the brave Baptist has spoken of a greater one,

  And you are thinking about what he will be like;

You hope that he will be the promised messiah,

  Who will handily harpoon and sink the Romans;

And you hope he will be the holy and majestic king,

  Who will restore peace and prosperity to his people.

One morning the Baptist paternally points towards the

  Shore of the Jordan, at the fearless Fisher of Men;

Your eager eyes are alert as you race after Jesus,

  With sweat dripping from your shaggy beard;

As you reach him, he turns and smiles at you with warm,

  Welcoming eyes, and your heart is mystically awakened;

It feels like a beautiful balmy breeze is sweetly caressing

  The sails of your fisherman’s soul.

HOUSE OF GOLD

Queen of All Hearts, our evil, eel-like

   Enemies rage because of our love for you;

They tantalizingly tempt us, to trip us,

   With so many vain valueless things.

With your ready right hand protect us,

   Through the power of your holy Son;

Courageously battle for us on the front line,

   Wisely wielding the sword of the Spirit.

May your serene countenance and sweet smile

   Bring us peace and confidence;

May His Divine Majesty bountifully bless

   And fill the Earth with His magnificent mercy.

Please pray for us when our thinking

   Is twisted and tangled by selfishness;

Quench our thirst by letting us drink

   From the cup of Our Lord's living water.

MYSTICAL ROSE

Sweet Queen, I glory in your gracious goodness,

  With my whole soul I delight in you;

I declare with a dancing heart that you bring

  Me ever nearer to the joys of Jesus.

Through you I thrive, in a life filled with

  Thanksgiving, as you invite me to Heaven;

With you as my guide, I gladly glide along

  The river of life closer to the Messiah.

You are the heavenly funnel through

  Which the fountain of the Spirit flows;

With excitement in your eyes, you point me

  Towards your Son, who patiently awaits us.

I run with you through the fields of grace,

  With your hand clasped in mine;

We laugh with elation, our hearts filled

  With the ecstatic love of the Holy Spirit.

THE LADY OF FATIMA

O Lighthouse of Love, you shine as a beacon

  Of God’s mercy to deliver us from darkness;

In your sublime sweetness, teach us

  To share this mercy with the world.

Our meddlesome enemy muddles our

  Daily lives with intoxicating idols;

May the Lord’s renewing rain rinse us

  Clean of corrosive, inordinate desires.

From His youth, and through the years,

  Jesus offered Himself to you in obedience;

May we too listen to the merry melody

  Of your delicate, dulcet voice.

Reach out and rescue us who are in need

  Of the refreshment of God’s love;

Pray that as overwhelmed outcasts we may find

  Favor and holy hope in the triumphant Trinity.

THE TERROR OF DEMONS

Pride is a red dragon that tries

To kindle our sinful souls with

The flaming fires of falsehood,

Causing our egos to swell with

The helium of haughtiness;

But thanksgiving is a weapon,

A weapon of heavenly wonder,

Used by the Holy Family when

There was arrogance in the air;

So when we are praised for some

Fine worldly accomplishment,

Then we too should turn to the

Lord God, and, with a little smile,

We should frequently thank Him

For each of His gracious gifts,

And seeing our happy hearts filled

To the brim with gratitude, behold,

The devil dragon flees in terror.

THANKSGIVING

When we’re thanksliving,

We choose for living,

We choose for giving,

Lovingly for-giving.

Thanksgiving,

What a wonderful

Gift from God,

It seems to me like

An inexhaustible 

Spiritual ocean of the

Dazzling, magnificent

Divine Mercy.

When we’re living,

In thanksgiving to God,

We’re living for giving,

Lovingly for-giving.

THE LADY OF LOURDES

Dear Lady of Lourdes,

   Luminous star of the majestic morning,

You have unending, unwavering

   Faith in our Heavenly Father.

In the glorious grandeur of Heaven,

   Your aquamarine eyes twinkle

And reflect the dazzling light

   Of your holy Sun.

By the excellence of your

   Exemplary sanctity, you surpass

All the splendid saints

   In the Heavenly Kingdom. 

Victorious Virgin, please pray

   That we receive the gift of

Prudence, to resist this world's

   Empty promises.

TOTUS TUUS

Sweet Santa Maria,

   Sweetest Queen of All Hearts,

How blessed are we who treasure

   Your humble holy heart.

Through you, we can allow

   God's grace to sublimely soak into our souls,

So that we can be refreshed as if by

   Cool cascades of pure pristine water.

Blessed are you among the peoples

   Of the world; by following your

Simple example, fresh fruit will

   Richly ripen on our trees.

God's magnificent mercy and

   Grace flow through you;

Lovely Madonnina, 

   Please pray for us.

AVE MARIA

She gently rocks me,    

back and forth,     

in her slender arms,    

since I’m a little babe    

who can’t find Jesus    

alone, without her;    

she lovingly caresses    

and warms me in the

cold dark night,     

and her smiling eyes    

twinkle in the Light;    

her soft rosy lips        

sweetly kiss me    

as she leads me    

faithfully and joyfully

to her merciful Son,    

the Bread of Life.

OUR LADY, THE QUEEN OF ALL HEARTS

She climbed aboard the world’s carousel,

  Cuz everyone said it was cool;

She then speedily spun around and around,

  But she really just played the fool.

Before she knew what true love was,

  She thought she had found the one;

So she fell -- in love -- and broke her heart,

  Cuz all she really wanted was fun.

You patiently dressed her painful wounds,

  Pouring New Wine into her heart;

Then you gently kissed her sobbing soul,

  Making whole what was ripped apart.

St. Louis de Montfort showed her a shortcut

  That ever so quickly led to your Son;

Only then did she finally learn about love,

  Only then did she discover The One.

OUR LADY OF THE ROSARY

When I squeezed the rosary with my

  Tense fingers, my soul was bone dry;

I prayed too fast, as if trying to speed

  Through Death Valley at high noon.

I pitched my prayers with fear, and they

  Wildly eluded the spiritual strike zone;

It was as though they were frantically

  Fired from a rickety machine gun.

Then you taught me how to pray, Madonnina,

  More slowly, and more meaningfully;

I peacefully sprinkled the rosary throughout

  The morning, watering my soul’s garden.

I threw sizzling strikes with love, which you

  Crisply caught and brought to Jesus;

As God’s holy warrior, Padre Pio spoke the

  Truth: “Lord, give me my weapon.”

OUR LADY'S LITTLE CANDLE IN THE DARK NIGHT

The poetic corner of the public square

  Has grown exceedingly dark and dreary,

And the fetid fog of moral relativism

  Has made this place rather eerie,

The dingy marketplace of worldly poetry

  Weighs us down and makes us weary.

But Our Lady ignites her little candle,

  To make bright this deep dark night,

At last, beautiful sweet poetry comes to us,

  That is right in God’s glorious sight,

The candle’s flame is a spearing sword,

  Ready to fight for the one true Light.

THE HOLY ROSARY OF THE MORNING STAR

I very slowly awaken,

Still groggy from sleep,

And I feel the black enemy

Wielding his cutlass of terror,

A weapon of worry and woe,

Ready to strike me down,

But before he reaches me,

I look to wise St. Joseph,

Who gives me Our Lady’s lasso,

The Most Holy Rosary

Of the Morning Star,

A superior weapon for 

Engaging in spiritual combat:

I pray it slowly, and meaningfully,

Praying a delicious decade

Each hour throughout the morning,

Meditating on the holy mysteries,

Relishing the sweet taste of Love,

Allowing Our Lady to scatter

God’s blessings like holy seeds

Wherever she wills, for she knows

Much better than I do how to please

The Lord of Divine Mercy;

But when the enemy sneaks up

And tries to mortally wound me,

I immediately grab my weapon,

And I squeeze the strong little beads

Like a Jedi does a light saber,

And my sincere, intense prayers,

Like an angel’s trumpet blast,

Reach the ears of Almighty God,

Who with legions of angels

Comes to rescue and save me.

THE VIRGIN MOON

The Virgin moon    

shines in splendor    

in the dark night,    

but in humility she    

recognizes that the true    

glory really belongs to her

Sun, whose Divine Mercy

rays of red and white

shine in dazzling brilliance        

through all eternity.

THE STAR IN THE DARK NIGHT

O heavenly Star,

I am living in the dark night

Of unknowing,

Searching for peace in uncertainty. 

O Lighthouse in the sky,

I am living in the dark night

Of the unseen,

Trying to die slowly to myself.

With your beacon of light,

Like a laser sword from Heaven,

You strike and slay

All my enemies.

I rejoice in the source

Of your powerful light,

Christ the Courageous,

Your only Sun.

THE KISS IN THE DARK NIGHT

As I awaken in the

Dark Night,

The swirling, twirling

Tempest of menacing fear

Violently threatens to

Throttle me.

But brimming with

The Messiah’s magnificent mercy,

Our Lady appears and

Gazes at me with a

Sweet, serene smile

And sparkling aquamarine eyes;

Then, with her soft, rosy lips,

She wonderfully warms my cheek

With a pure, gentle, loving

Kiss.

Suddenly the surging

Tornado of terror

Silently ceases as

The Spirit

Blows in the breeze

And soars through

My soul.

THE TILMA

In the old mission church,

We, faithful pilgrims, are 

Packed together tightly

Much like votive candles,

Our weary wicks waiting

To be lit by Our Lady,

With the fire of the Spirit;

It wasn’t the real tilma,

Yet the good God has

No limits whatsoever, so

After mass, I approached,

Not expecting anything —

But when I touched her,

Love’s flame filled me,

And the Divine Mercy

Warmly embraced me.

THE INCARNATION

Whispered sweetly, her “yes”

Ripples and reverberates

Through the Halls of Heaven,

And the Spirit speeds through the

Atmosphere in a powerful pulse

Of gleaming, virginal white light

Into the humble House of Gold:

And, behold, The Divine Mercy is

Incarnate.

LA MADONNINA D'AMORE

During the deep dark night,

I open the eyes of my soul,

and I see her before me,

glittering in glorious brilliance.

She smiles at me, softly, gently,

and reminds me that she rejoices

greatly when I meditate on the

Holy Passion of her sweet Son.

I listen to the magnificent music

of her most wonderful words,

and light shines in the darkness,

burning away the folly of fear.

A CANTICLE OF CHEERFULNESS

A Tribute to Three Saints and a Venerable

My spirit rejoices in God, my savior;

He had the divine sense of humor; 

If I did not become upset, there would be joy in this;

I will serve God cheerfully,

Be cheerful, always cheerful,

One needs to have smiling faces around,

Live a happy life, full of joy!

Today you laugh and sing and carry your smile,

Optimism? Yes, always! Break into song with a Gloria,

Happiness is a consequence of self-surrender.