Words walk upon the porous page,
From a plain poet’s heart well wrought;
A little-known and silly sage;
Caring not if he should or ought.
Insolent indelible ink,
Which pours forth my secret soul,
With words that stand upon the brink
Of unwritten lines yet to know.
Each verse born with labor of love;
As I search for long elusive line;
Magical words descend from above.
Such marvelous muses are mine?
What soft and eager eye shall see?
Or what heart touched by the sound,
Of this poor poet’s right to be;
Even after he’s long in the ground?
I write not for exalted accolades,
Or applause from a cheering crowd;
Unable to draw the silent shades,
A poet’s heart must speak aloud

Many of you know that I have a vagabond heart. I am always looking for the next trip, next trek, next move—the “next big thing.” As I get older, I am struggling with “settling down.” The desire is still strong but the body says this is getting tougher. I wrote this poem about my interior struggle.

The Sound of Settling

What is the sound of settling,
When you’re a vagabond?
Does it even exist?
Or just midnight mist,
Passing through
A road-weary brain.

Without warning.
Age creeps in,
Leaving you tired from
Constant moving;
But not wanting to stop.
The thought,
The thrill,
The wonder,
Is still there;
But bodies age,
When minds don’t.

What is the sound of settling,
When you’re a vagabond?
Knowing this is
The last move,
The last new place,
Now becoming old.
While wanting to see,
To be,
To experience
Something different,
Something new;
Knowing that being content
Means staying,
Sinking down roots,
Accepting sameness.
Yet, there is always
The call of gypsy horses
In the night.

I wrote this poem the week that I turned 70. I never thought that I would live this long, but what a life I have been blessed with. I have no idea how much time I have left on this earth, but when I do leave, I plan on smiling into eternity!

At birth
The world
Was a blank canvas;
A palette,
Every color imaginable;
A brush,
Placed in my hand
To paint what could be.

At death,
A self-portrait,
Painted through decades
Of what was and is;
With permanent brush stokes
Highlighting how I lived.

In between.
A gypsy caravan
Across this beautiful world;
Stopping to paint
Breathtaking beauty of mountaintops,
Piercing pain of valleys,
Exhilaration of achievements,
Despondence in disappointments.
A tapestry of
Laughter, tears, trials, and triumphs;
A marvelous adventure
Lived with those I love.

Hello, Hearts of Hope Community. I want to share with you a new feature I have added.

I write a lot of poetry! So far, I have composed 24 poems in 2026. That is almost a poem a week, which is my goal for the year. I currently have over 30 poems “in process.” These range from a couple of lines to the poem almost finished. Most of my poetry is Christian in nature. However, I do write poems that are not specifically Christian. Lately, I have been pondering how to share these poems and where they might live.

I recently discovered that Substack, where I post Monday Missives, has a feature called sections. You can create a section separate from your main publication, with its own place for writing to live and its own mailing list. So, I have created a new section titled “Poems Greg M Cole.”

In this section, I will be posting poems that will not appear in Monday Missives. They will be poems that are not generally Christian, but I hope still express the beauty and power of poetry. Sometimes, they will have an explanation of where or how the idea for the poem originated, but not always. Sometimes, it will be just a poem. The posting will be random, with no set schedule. However, the first poem will be coming your way this Saturday.

Because you are on Hearts of Hope email list and already receive my current posts, I have added you to this new poetry section mailing list. If for any reason you do not want to receive these poems in your inbox you can unsubscribe at any time. I hope you won’t unsubscribe, but realize that each of us are different with unique likes and dislikes.

On another note, I try to be responsive to suggestions concerning content. So please let me know if there is any area or subject that you would like for me to address.

Thank you so so much for being a faithful follower. May you be richly blessed by the Lord, as He gives you joy and hope!