Newsletter of the World of Words by Elias Tobias

World of Words celebrates first anniversary

The new World of Words by Elias Tobias is one year old this month.  The move from the former static Web site with Tripod  format came to WSI and the poetry Web blob was officially launched Feb. 12, 2007.  Many of the goals have been accomplished.  Audio was started for the Love Notes collection, Next Flight audio was set up, and more poems were added.  More pages were added including Poetry First Aid and more biographical information about Elias Tobias and his wife.

Five videos have been launched to promote the poetry blog, the last two including one for the song Next Flight and the poem, Mexican Love Song.  More opportunities for readers have been initiated including a free open poetry forum, free offers, along with more people making comments about the poems.

There is more to do, though.  More videos, One goal is to get more readers involved with the opportunities available. More new poems, and starting the book of poems in Spanish.  This is a bulletin board page item for this month. Also on the bulletin board is Valentine’s Day.  There will be more love poems featured this month. 

 Poem of the Month 

Easter is coming in a month.  Abouth the time I began using the pen name Elias Tobias, I became an ordained minister of the Universal Life Church (June 7, 1993). I have not done much with this, making a living as a teacher and a journalist.  I have not performed any ceremonies or anything, except write a few religious-oriented poems. A few are already in the My Favorite Poems book or category and other pages on the World of Words by Elias Tobias. These poems include Earth Song, In the Valley of Emotion, Your Love, Calico Creek, The Beauty of Life, Lines of Life and God is my Father, Oh Lord.  A new book or category will be added, called Grace and Glory, to contain these new poems.  The poem of the poem is really three poems to begin this book.

 CROSS POEM

  Let me not
  be selfish
  with your
  love,Lord.
 because I know I’m not the only one.
 Jesus Christ, your son, was sent to
 spread your words, your thoughts to
  people like
  me. I can’t
  live like
  He did, but
  I can try.
  Help me to
  Do this I
  pray, Amen.

  GIVE ME A VOICE

Give me a voice so I can proclaim
there’s one Lord at peace’s door
and that His son, Jesus, is the key.
Show me, show me, show me the
scriptures and. what they say.
Give me, give me, give me the
patience to learn your way.

Give me a voice so I can proclaim
there’s one Lord at peace’s door
and that His son, Jesus, is the key.
Show me, show me, show me the
 miracles of life everyday.
Give me, give me, glve me your
 grace when I stop to pray.
 
Give me a voice so I can proclaim
there’s one Lord at peace’s door
and that His son, Jesus, is the key.
Give me patience to learn your ways.
Fill me with your grace everyday.
Show me, show me, show me the
scriptures and what they say.
Give me a voice so I can proclaim
there’s one Lord at peace’s door,
and Jesus, His only son, is the key.

  
LOVE AND GRACE

Help me through the night, Lord,
and I’ll be all right.
My body aches, my heart hurts,
and I know if it were not
for your love and grace I
could not face another day.
All I can do is pray,
in the name of your son, Jesus,
I will see the morning light
from under the covers of my bed.
Lord, I really need the rest.

The Wandering Troubadour

In the 1970’s, there was a song by Bread called “Guitar man” about a man, called a troubadour, who traveled around singing. It was his life.  Centuries before this song came out, the predecessors of the MP3s were people who made a living going from town to town singing his style of lyric poetry.  The singer was also the roving reporter for news from villages and far way places.  While the medium has changed, the need for poetry, music, and news has not.

The Wandering Troubadour

I’m a wandering troubadour, and
I sing my songs on the street.
Anyone and everyone is my audience,
and  I travel with the world at my feet.
My journey will never end since
I will always find a friend who
wants to listen to me sing.

With my singing voice ready, and my guitar in my hands,
I sing of glory and of lost loves like I was a one-man band.
I know hundreds of songs, and I can recite them on demand.
Some songs might sound familiar, but I sing them with my brand

I’m a wandering troubadour, and
I sing my songs on the street.
Anyone and everyone is my audience,
and  I travel with the world at my feet.
My journey will never end since
I will always find a friend who
wants to listen to me sing.

It’s interesting to listen to the people, and hear what each one has to say.
Every person interprets my song sin their own individual way.
When I wake up each morning, I’m blessed to give the new day the gift
of music and melody from the mountains to the bay.
I really enjoy doing what I do, and I love to earn my pay.

I’m a wandering troubadour, and
I sing my songs on the street.
Anyone and everyone is my audience,
and  I travel with the world at my feet.
My journey will never end since
I will always find a friend who
wants to listen to me sing.
 

Each word in each line of each poem has to be measured like ingredients in a recipe .  Too much of this , or not enough of that can make a poem taste real bad.  These next poems at first glance are the same - same form and format, yet the words are different and they create a whole new experience and perspective on different topics.

In too deep

I’m in too deep,
And now I want to get out
I’m in too deep,
And it makes me want to shout.
I’m in too deep, and
I don’t know why it came about

I’m in too deep,
And I don’t know what to do.
I’m in too deep,
And it’s all because of you.
I’m in too deep,
And I feel like a fool.

I’m in too deep,
And I didn’t expect life this raw.
I’m in too deep, and
I don’t like being against the law.
I’m in too deep,
And I can’t believe the things I saw.

I’m in too deep,
And it’s going to get worse
I’m in too deep,
And being with you is a curse
I’m in too deep,
And I need to make a plan first.

I’m in too deep,
But I think I’ve figured a way.
I’m in too deep,
I know I can leave and you’ll stay.
I’m in too deep,
But I will be free from you someday.

In too deep

I’m in too deep,
And now I want to get out
I’m in too deep,
And I feel like I want to shout.
I’m in too deep,
And I need a different route.

I’m in too deep,
And your smile was the start
I’m in too deep,
And now you have my heart
I’m in too deep,
You know you have that part.

I’m in too deep,
And I don’t know what to do.
I’m in too deep,
And it’s all because of you.
I’m in too deep,
And I feel like a fool.

I’m in too deep,
And that wasn’t part of the plan.
I’m in too deep,
All I wanted was you as my man.
I’m in too deep,
You took advantage of me and ran.

I’m in too deep,
But I think I’ve figured a way.
I’m in too deep,
I know how I can make you stay.
I’m in too deep,
You’ll be by my side always, I pray.

Newsletter of the World of Words by Elias Tobias

Hope everyone had a great Christmas and a Happy New Year holiday. Mrs. Claus  and I had a chance to visit relatives in several states after my big night of the year.  Here is a picture of us.   

We got a chance to catch-up with folks we had not had an opportunity to visit with in years. It was good to see the children of my sisters, and of course, we took lots of pictures, too.

World Debut of Mexican Love Song Video

As promised, the World of Words by Elias Tobias produced its fifth promotional video, a longer production to illustrate the poem, Mexican Love Song.  The poet narrates the poem with the poem and illustration as a slide.  Latins are supposed to be great lovers, and the character in this poem has an easy time remembering the names of all his women. To see the poem go to http://www.youtube.com/user/etobiasnew.

Free autographed hand-written copy of your favorite poem

The World of Worlds by Elias Tobias has an offer that may be just as good as cash.

Do you have a favorite poem among the 140 or so poems written by Elias Tobias posted on this Web blog? The first 10 readers from today who send an e-mail to contact@eliastobias.net saying they want a hand-written copy of their favorite poem from Elias Tobias will get that document along with a personal greeting.

But wait. There’s more! Along with each scribed poem, the reader will receive a free autographed photo of Elias Tobias. The poem will be scanned as a PDF document and the photo send electronically through e-mail. This a limited-time offer.

So go through the Web blog, and pick your favorite Elias Poem. The hand-written copy is a free present to the first 10 people who respond. Please choose only one poem per request. As you read the poems, and would like to make any comments, send an e-mail to the Webmaster at the end of each post.

 Poem of the Month 

Speaking of poetry, the January Poem of the Month demonstrates the power of words.  Used in different settings, words can start or end wars, heal or tear emotions and feelings, and determine the edge between success or failure.  The poem was written several years ago to help inspire students when I was a public school teacher.

The Power

        Everyone has the power,
the power of words: written, spoken or heard,
        no matter what language is used. 
                  Letters form the words and
                   words themselves become
                   building blocks of mental
                   images collected in the mind’s eye.
You can transport yourself
Anywhere any place at anytime in
the universe of unlimited imagination.
        Concentrate to be concise,
        or contrary to be confusing, it
       depends on the purpose you’re using. 
                 Transform a noun into verb, or you 
                 can change an adjective to an adverb 
                  quite easily.  Invent new words, too.
Continue sentences forever with
the right combination of prepositions
to include many descriptive phrases.
        The power of positive communication
        can at the same time help or hurt you,
        depending on the receivers of the words.
                   The power of words can change the world,
                   and everyone has the power to use words.

To read this poem in Spanish, click here.