For Love


People often ask why I teach, or write, or minister. The answer is always the same...Love. I teach for the love of sharing knowledge with others. I write for the love of words and how placing them in just the right position can paint a picture in someone's mind. I minister for the love of being of service to others.

This past month, I have been participating in the 30 Poems in November! Challenge. The poems I have written have been dedicated and inspired by those I teach and for whom the money raised will benefit. I have not reached my goal, yet. I still have hope.

The money from 30 Poems goes to the programs and needs of Center for New Americans (CNA), a non-profit agency with sites in four Western Massachusetts cities. CNA helps immigrants and refugees learn English as well as assists in finding jobs, housing, citizenship and a host of other needs.

Center for New Americans runs its daily operations on grants, donations and volunteers. Fundraising is essential to our success. 30 Poems in November! is a way to promote literacy as well as raise the much needed funds to keep CNA a viable part of the community.

I love my work at CNA. (How many people can really say that?) The joy of seeing my students grasp the complicated and often mind-boggling intricacies of the English language is deeply satisfying. Each day is new and exciting. In addition, my students teach me more that they will ever know. Furthermore, I am the granddaughter of immigrants. For me, this work is a way to honor those who came before.

I leave you, today, with one of my poems and a request. If you have not considered donating to 30 Poems in November, please think about giving. All donations are tax deductible.

Go to: https://cnam.org/civicrm/pcp/info?reset=1&id=93 

Click on "Donate Now." You will see two choices. If you want to donate online, make sure you click on the radial button before that choice, then scroll down to make the choice for Paypal or Visa/Mastercard. 

If you want to send a check, make it out to Center for New Americans, and put 30 Poems/Neas in the memo line so it will be counted towards my donations. Mail your check to Center for New Americans, 42 Gothic Street, Northampton, MA 01060

Education

The roles switch daily - 
teacher becomes student - 
lessons learned in magic moments 
when least expected - 
life lessons -
never to be forgotten 

One plus one equals two, 
until it equals three 
or four or more, 
but there is always enough - 

humans can overcome obstacles 
of great height, weight and dimension, 
when those they love 
are in need - 

family are those around you 
with whom you travel 
through the maze of now - 

desires never die, 
as long as you keep believing, 
keep moving forward, 
keep trying - 

then, 
your hand reaches out 
to help others gain a foothold 
until we all stand together - 
connected by understanding, 
hope and dreams come true. 

© 2017 Linda M. Rhinehart Neas  

#love, #education, #poems





Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Hyacinths to Feed Thy Soul

Image
As we progress through Poetry Month, I have been reading many of my old poetry books. Some are journals into which Momma placed her favorites poems, which are now my favorite poems. One of my absolute top ten poems is: If of thy mortal goods thou art bereft, And from thy slender store two loaves alone to thee are left, Sell one, and with the dole Buy hyacinths to feed thy soul. This beautiful verse was written by MOSLIH EDDIN (MUSLIH-UN-DIN) SAADI (SADI ) , who was a major Persian poet of the medieval times. It is just one of the many beautiful verses in his book Gulistan ("The Rose Garden") . (Photo Credit) ~~~~~~ Also from Gulistan, is the verse which visitors find at the entrance to the United Nations Hall of Nations. It reads: Human beings are members of a whole, In creation of one essence and soul . If one member is afflicted with pain, Other members uneasy will remain. If you have no sympathy for human pain, The name of human you cannot ...
Read more

Grandchildren Connections - Guest Post

Image
 Today, I have the honor of sharing a guest post with the author of I Can't Wait to Love You Forever, Patricia Eckerman Ambas.  I highly recommend this book both for the content and the illustrations. I wished I had a copy of it way back when I was raising my girls. Patricia is a talented writer. I hope you enjoy her post. Grandchildren Connections Grandparents are powerful forces. The ones who can be the second parents, but more of the love and fun, and less of the discipline. Not even close to being a grandmother yet, I consider myself close to the source of what grandchildren want (as a beloved and loving granddaughter myself) and raising three children who have a close connection with both sets of grandparents. I have two tips to share with you that can begin to cultivate a stronger relationship with your grandchildren.  One of the reasons I’m sharing on this topic is that I’m finding some of my biggest book fans are grandparents. They love buying my books for their g...
Read more

Giving Thanks for Writers - Blog Hop!

Image
Today, Words from the Heart is part of a huge blog hop.  A blog hop is an event where readers have the opportunity to visit a group of blogs that are promoting or celebrating the same thing.  This blog hop is brought to you by the WoMen's Literary Cafe Authors as part of their Gratitude celebration. For our part of the hop, we are honored to post and grateful to host author, Wendy Young .  Wendy's book, Come the Shadows , will be part of our Blog Hop give-away. You'll want to check out the other blogs that are also hosting give-aways! Find out more at the end of this post! Gratitude by Wendy Young This is the time of year where everyone begins to consider the question: What are you thankful for? In my house, now that we’ve started having kids, we try to make it a daily question. Every night we ask our son: What are you thankful for? His answers are quite simple and surprising – even something like his blanket will rate on the list. We’re happy that, so far, both Mo...
Read more