The Crux of Immortal Folly

The Crux of Immortal Folly
by Michael Doyle

From where we come
To where we might go,
Each belief has its kingdom
Within the universal flow.

Memories have their persistence
Forming the nucleus of all we know.
Sometimes it forms the resistance
That causes even shadows to glow.

Galaxies move forward and shift
Becoming something shiny and new.
The cosmos continues to change and drift.
It forges what might yet be true.

Some might call this out for its glory,
But we know that destruction frames loss.
What comes next might be a new story,
But it comes with its cost.

Out of what seems many, there is truly one.
We hide from the dark in places of light.
Ever since the universe had first begun,
We've known there are things hidden from sight.

Claims made make even the gods fear.
What is seen is not as it appears.
But alliances made are unstoppable,
Only if they are truly unconquerable.

New gods replace old gods as time goes on.
Righteousness, ill-defined, gives man free will.
The experiment fails into a godless oblivion,
Knowing that gives the old god a sense of chill.

Yet little is what it seems to be,
And tricks of illusion are more common than truth.
Deception is the crux of immortality.
We have known this since our youth.

(c)May 18, 2026 Michael Doyle
All Rights Reserved
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First Principles: Bad Men Cannot Make Good Citizens. It Is When A People Forget God That Tyrants Forge Their Chains

“Bad men cannot make good citizens. It is when a people forget God that tyrants forge their chains. A vitiated state of morals, a corrupted public conscience, is incompatible with freedom. No free government, or the blessings of liberty, can be preserved to any people but by a firm adherence to justice, moderation, temperance, frugality, and virtue; and by a frequent recurrence to fundamental principles.” – Patrick Henry

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Thought For the Day: Prayer Can Truly Change Your Life. For It Turns Your Attention Away From Yourself and Directs Your Mind and Your Heart Toward the Lord

“Prayer can truly change your life. For it turns your attention away from yourself and directs your mind and your heart toward the Lord. If we look only at ourselves, with our own limitations and sins, we quickly give way to sadness and discouragement. But if we keep our eyes fixed on the Lord, then our hearts are filled with hope, our minds are washed n the light of truth, and we come to know the fullness of the Gospel with all is promise and life.” – Pope John Paul II (A real Christian pope)

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Esther

Esther
by Michael Doyle

Sacrificial in obedience to purity,
Dedicated to giving back for all God has given me.
Giving comfort and love to the stranger,
We put ourselves in meaningful danger.

Full throttle in life to set others free,
There's maybe no better place to be.
To live life's love setting others free.
It's worth the sacrifice to end slavery.

Free people live to free people lost.
To believers in God, it's worth the cost.
Esther did this in freeing her people,
Who lived in Persia without a temple.

In the king's palace, Esther lived as his wife,
To the king, being a favorite can cause strife.
And likewise, we find that life can bring difficulty,
From this, we can learn patience and humility.

Crisis, compassion, community, and honest care
Are the keywords lived by those who dare.
Investing in the turning points peppering our days.
We must face these in pure and godly ways.

Giving up comfort so we may yet thrive
Is often a lesson in staying alive.
Giving up some comfort to give it to another,
Is how we can live in love for each other.

The changes needed require moving past the pain,
To make the changes needed in life's refrain.
These are often times we move to the community,
All that is needed is prayer for our human family.

When you are going through a situation,
Life sometimes takes some circumspection.
Walking boldly into life's loud cacophony,
We may fear, but we obey with true humility.

Risk comes to build by walking through fear,
Taking care to heed signs that will not disappear.
Courageous steps are taken when we are afraid.
It often arrives at the best plans made.

God sees us wherever we are,
And he extends an invitation to change from far.
We grow in this holy family as God leads,
Knowing that He always knows all of our needs.

(c)May 17, 2026 Michael Doyle
All Rights Reserved

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Thought For the Day: Life Is Not A Straight Line Leading From One Blessing To the Next and Then Finally To Heaven. Life Is A Winding and Troubled Road

“Life is not a straight line leading from one blessing to the next and then finally to heaven. Life is a winding and troubled road. Switchback after switchback. And the point of biblical stories like Joseph and Job and Esther and Ruth is to help us feel in our bones (not just know in our heads) that God is for us in all these strange turns. God is not just showing up after the trouble and cleaning it up. He is plotting the course and managing the troubles with far-reaching purposes for our good and for the glory of Jesus Christ.” – John Piper

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First Principles: Those Who Hope In the Lord Will Renew Their Strength. They Will Soar On Wings Like Eagles; They Will Run and Not Grow Weary

“But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not be faint.” – Isaiah 40:31

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Indiana’s Waters

Indiana's Waters
by Michael Doyle

Indiana first greeted me with a rainy season.
It lasted about sixty days and tried my reason.
Patiently, I've explored this place and its stops.
There's so much to see between the velvet raindrops.

The backroads are filled with flowered beauty,
And kept my eyes open to ravines that are new to me.
Every flower and towering tree whispers pure majesty.
The colors of each season paint God's rich tapestry

From moonlit rivers with wooded shores,
To lakes and streams, ponds and more,
Each holds life created by God's hand,
Hidden there from ponds to vibrant wetlands.

Shadowy sycamores hold the scent of summer's bliss,
Each breeze whispers of wonders that I might miss.
Even now, as I engage in a study of photography,
Nearly all nature preserves provide water as a nursery.

Lush and green like a Garden of Eden well-grown
The waters have nourished more peace than I have known.
From the Ohio River to the sandy shores of Lake Michigan,
It's on the banks of the Wabash that I am home again.

From moonlit rivers with wooded shores,
To lakes and streams, ponds and more,
Each holds life created by God's hand,
Hidden there from ponds to vibrant wetlands.

Once, this land was part of a shallow inland sea.
Over the course of time, she has changed by necessity.
Being at once a muse and keeper of secrets found,
Indiana's circle of life is the waters that abound,

Skipping pebbles that ripple across the waterway,
Memories come back to times of full sunny days.
I have found that life's meaning is in a child's laugh
As a wade in the water leads to another bath.

From moonlit rivers with wooded shores,
To lakes and streams, ponds and more,
Each holds life created by God's hand,
Hidden there from ponds to vibrant wetlands

(c) May 16, 2026 Michael Doyle
All Rights Reserved
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First Principles: A People Who Mean To Be Free Must Be Prepared To Meet Danger In Person, and Not Rely Upon the Fallacious Protection of Armies

“A people who mean to be free must be prepared to meet danger in person, and not rely upon the fallacious protection of armies” – Edmund Randolph

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Thought For the Day: Watch Out For Each Other. Love Everyone and Forgive Everyone, Including Yourself…Embrace and Open Up Your Love

“Watch out for each other. Love everyone and forgive everyone, including yourself. Forgive your anger. Forgive your guilt. Your shame. Your sadness. Embrace and open up your love, your joy, your truth, and most especially your heart.” – Jim Henson

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The Weight of Life’s Precision

The Weight of Life's Precision
by Michael Doyle

Error is the margin of lost control.
The world gradually takes your soul.
The things of this world will cost us pain,
Until we walk beyond the shadow of rain.

Traveling this world on the way out,
The darkest place is to be lost in doubt.
Family and friends can't let go.
It's a three-ring circus - on with the show.

Hitting the road to find a return,
We can't move without feeling the burn.
It's the fragile, delicate proposition,
Everything has the weight of precision.

You can't side-step the dark process.
It's just one more sign that life is a test.
Getting past the point of what's possible,
We grow more than we know that we're capable.

Conquering legions of demons is the second chance,
Skepticism forms itself into a familiar ghost dance.
Each step took us further than we thought we knew.
We color outside the lines we once drew.

Hitting the road to find a return,
We can't move without feeling the burn.
It's the fragile, delicate proposition,
Everything has the weight of precision.

The world spins until once weird is cool.
It seems the pattern made into the rule.
The virtue of never selling out to the game,
This is the stream of accidentally winning fame.

In the musical root that bleeds sincerity,
These are the decades lived in our integrity.
The top of the world is felt from the inside.
There is no wound to this dream of pride.

Hitting the road to find a return,
We can't move without feeling the burn.
It's the fragile, delicate proposition,
Everything has the weight of precision.

(c)May 15, 2026 Michael Doyle
All Rights Reserved
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