Where have all the Salamanders gone?

I remember a time long ago

Back in the days when I was young still,

Around the family farm I would go, 

An adventurer seeking his thrill. 

I would flip stones and wood on the ground

And there in the damp earth it would be, 

Each and every time,  so quickly found:

A salamander just waiting for me!

I remember, how cool to the touch 

and yet how tough their skin seemed to be and how they would give me quite the fuss 

as they attempted to wriggle free 

I, being young, would always worry 

that holding them tight would cause them pain 

so I was always in a hurry 

to adore and then free them again.

No longer young, rather, an old man,

I find that I am a bit confused.

I still flip things whenever I can 

but beneath, I find the earth unused.

It's to the point I can't help but ask 

each time I flip, before I move on

In my now wholey unfruitful task 

Where have all the salamanders gone?

An Epitaph

Beneath this stone that fell from the sky

Lay just another normalish guy

Hopes and dreams once filled his youthful head

Which life dashed and completely shattered

Like this stone which has stricken him dead

But long before his skull was scattered

Amongst the sand's most commonest grains

Leaving behind forgotten remains.

Columbus Day

With just a vision and convicted soul,

He and his men faced the great ocean's roll

Though things did not go quite as planned:

He sought for new routes, but found a new land!

For the stars of our destiny aligned

And the Gods gave a gift to Western Kind

One that we alone were to manifest

And thus from sea to sea, we became blessed.

For we pressed our will, and we tamed the land

So that our cities could grow fast and grand.

Now, we would not be here if not for him

So fill your glass up to the very brim,

Lift it in a toast, and then proudly say

Brethren, have a Happy Columbus Day!

Hymn to Juno Lucina

Dearest Juno Lucina, I have received great news!
That after examination all of those issues
that made my Son’s birth a risk
by your divine hand, have been whisked
away to some unknown place
and you have left, in your sweet grace,
a day to look forward to in a hopeful light,
one of joyous celebration and delight.

Mundus Patet

You may not see the mist swirling around the ground,

Wrapping around your ankles as if to pull you down…

Nor the fog that isn’t fog, cold and brief,

leaping from the earth in joyous grief

You may not see it , or touch it yet

but it is there to be sure, so do not forget:

Say a prayer for your ancestors and passed Kin,

set a meal for them to gather and partake in…

Wine for those spirits who enjoy a spirits drop

Milk and honey, or soup with bread to sop

Candles flame to light their path to and fro

incense to purify and enjoy before they go.

Say the names you know with reverence and respect

and nameless ask forgiveness, that you do not neglect

to honor all kindred, for though some names escape us

we honor them still, for they shaped us, and won’t forsake us.

Before dear Ceres, make certain to bow

And make an offering to her of a sow,

Or gather fruit, flowers, or a handful of wheat

To lay in offering at the Goddess' feet 

In gratitude for the boundaries she holds fast 

That the shadowed veil continues to last.

Or wear a poppy proudly upon your breast

That she may count you among her blessed...

Dis Pater, Dis Pater, Do not forget Dis Pater!

Say a blessing, and light a flame in his Honor!

A plate of food, a glass of Wine

A hymn and prayer said in honor of the divine.

Let no lip utter, nor mind give the thought

That this day came, and you observed it not.

May you be praised and held in esteem instead

That you fulfilled your oath to your honored dead,

and to the Gods and Goddesses most deserving

you gave praise, and offering, thus preserving

rites that have dimmed, but have not died

and your children may carry this on with pride

that one day your name may be honored as well

when you pass on to where your ancestors dwell.