Thanks iam4u. I like the first the best too.. I have several poems.. I'll post one about friendship now..

Meaning of the Heart

In life we have many people we call our friends...but when you really think about it, how many of your friends would be there, with you through anything? Life has it's ups and it's downs...Often the friends we choose are great during the "ups" and nowhere to be found during the "downs."

A friend is someone who is there...no matter what. Someone to laugh with. Someone to hold you up when you just know you're going to fall. Someone who knows you...sometimes even better than you know yourself.

A friend is someone who cares enough about you to learn all those unimportant things...Things that are more important than you realize. Someone who is not afraid to give you a reality check when yours has bounced.

In you, I have truely found a real friend. You have been there to laugh with, and whether you realize it or not, to cry with. You have held me up even if you didn't know it. You have opened my eyes when I was blind...And opened my mind when I couldn't see.

I don't know how or when, but you somehow got into this heart of mine. You know me, it seems, better than I know myself. I value you. I value our friendship. You cared enough to learn those "Unimportant" things. You have taken the time to understand me.

I just want to say, when you need me, I will be there. I will hold you up if you ever need it... Laugh with you, cry with you...as a friend. For I hope that I can be as good a friend to you as you are to me.

Thanks... I found this poem to be especially true..I'll add another in here as well.. I hope you enjoy this one too.

This Is The Night

Walking along the beach at sunset
The soft breeze smells refreshingly sweet

Passion is surrounding us and we can sense the heat
The trees dancing to our melody, the waves slapping our tender feet

This is the night...The night we have that special sight
Out in the open flying so free, thank you for bringing me.

The sound of the swan's calling, the feel of us falling
Down, down, down to the soft, damp ground

This is the night and the time is oh, so right
Out in the open flying so free, thank you for bringing me.

To Win The Love Of The Untrusting

To win the love of the untrusting, the hurt, the scared, open your heart as a friend.
Be a friend through hard times. Don't push love onto the broken hearted, just lead them to happiness. Show them first, and above all, you are their friend. Let them know the love is there when they need it.

To give friendship before love is important in all relationships, but necessary for the broken hearted. So show me you're my friend...Show me I can trust you, can count on you to be there, first as my friend, and secondly as my love. Only after friendship is given will my heart surrender.

Walk with me along the beach, hold me in front of the fire, cuddle with me while watching TV, and gaze in awe with me at the wonder of the stars. Lead me to the happy places; lend me a shoulder to cry on when we walk through the sad ones. Let love take the form of friendship so you don't scare me away.

Don't push me into saying "I love you," I am not ready for that. Be okay with me saying "I like you" and we will get along just fine. Smile with me when I am happy, frown with me when I am sad. Hug me in the good times, and more importantly, during the bad. Wipe the tears from my eyes and tell me I have nothing to fear. Only when I know that, will my love flow freely.

Share yourself with me, let me know what makes you live and love. Tell me what fascinates you, what scares you, and what makes you laugh. Show me who you are. Open up and let me know you, only then will I allow you to know me.

I'm sorry you two didn't work out :( I haven't met anyone from here, as I said, but there are a few nearby who I've been talking to regularly, so who knows? I may meet someone from Mingle soon :)

Thanks... That last stanza'a point was to make you think, or make me think...

Thanks everyone... I'll share another poem soon.

Thanks, I wrote that a couple years ago.. I consider it one of my best poems, though I have many more that others say are better.

I'm a nice woman, not girl, in California. I think the difference is that I'm a transplant. I'm not Californian. I was raised with the midwestern values and morals. So many people in California (no offense intended to ppl here) are superficial, fake, and manipulative. It really makes you wonder what it is about this state that makes so many people that way...

Not off this site, no... I've met a few people from other sites, like myspace. I actually met only one from there, but since my friends from other places have added me to myspace, which makes it that I've met about 5 ppl who are on my friend's list..
I also met a few people from BOM (bookofmatches) which went down the tubes in the past year (that's part of why I joined mingle ;) )

I'd say 35 or so, based on your profile picture.

There has never been a time for me that I feel more lost than now
I work so hard at finding me, but I can't figure out quite how

Am I loving? Am I caring? Do I have a gentle heart?
I'm so lost right now, no idea where to start

Can I love? Can I hate? Can I live? Do I learn?
To find this all out is for what I yearn

Do I want to love? Do I want to be alone?
These are things I long since should have known

I am hurting with my heart full of tears
What have I done so far to survive all these years?

When I go to bed and I cry
Do I really wanna die?

How can I find out all these things?
Have you any idea the frustration it brings?

I would rather live my life searching for a reason why
Than live my entire life protected by a lie.

Welcome to mingle.. I'm a bit new too... I've been here about a month and haven't been very active in the forums. It seems like a great place though. I already knew some of the members when I joined, so I can tell you there are some great people on here :)

lmao Dan!!

As I promised Phil, I'm bumpin this... I told him I'd help him keep it goin ;)

Who, Dan?? LMAO somehow... I totally believe that!!

Hiya Dan, nice to see you again

So a few things I'd like to say on the child support issue... The courts will not take away child support used for ANY reason... The way they see it is that the custodial parent pays many times the amount of money for the support of the child more than the noncustodial parent... So if the custodial parent spends that money (and I am NOT condoning this) on themselves, it's supposedly not a huge deal....

Now, if you're having some of the troubles I've had with collecting child support, I have a suggestion. My ex was required to have his wages attached, and by law, to report to each new employer that he has a child support obligation so they can attach his wages from the beginning. What he learned is that if he didn't report to his employer that he had such an obligation, it would delay the garnishment for about 90 days or so.. Also, he learned that if he quit his job as soon as the first garnishment happened, and got a different job, basically changing employers every 90 days, he would be paying minimal child support... He'd lose his driver's license for nonpayment and go to court saying he needed it to get to and from work, then he'd continue his nonpayment after the license was given back....

So I know the child support dilemma... So what I did was research online. There is a company called supportkids.com that will enforce child support payments when the state/local child support agency is unable to. The child support agency has specific rules they have to follow in collection of support, where supportkids has a much more effective system. They will freeze ALL assets of the noncustodial parent and their spouse if they have one, put leins on houses and cars, and pretty much tie up every single asset that person owns until they pay.

Now supportkids does take I think like 7% of it's collection amount, so some people just don't see the point... My view is, if I'm getting nothing, I'll gladly give up 7% of something for that to change, because I can't afford to raise babies without that child support...

Supportkids won't help you until the parent is $5000 or more in arrears because they don't want you to use them as a retaliatory act in a fight. They want you to take the child support seriously and once they've collected for a while, your local child support agency does pick up the tab and you stop losing that 7%.

I used this place for my deadbeat ex.. I hadn't gotten a single child support payment from my ex in the 10 years his daughter had been alive, and had just become disabled. I really needed that child support badly! It worked well. I'd use them again if I ended up in the situation again. The good thing is that my now knows I'd do it, so he doesn't even consider nonpayment :)

Mornin Judy :) I don't know all the men here, but well.. I just wanted to say, you're doin a great job fillin up the calandar :)

I agree with the "pay it forward" way of life as well...

I really just treat people as I'd like to be treated and teach my children to do the same.

Aww Koury, you know you're laughin your little tush off

I live in California, the bay area, where toll bridges are a way of life... in 1985, when we moved here, it was $.25 toll... Now it's $4.00 and they're talking about another raise.

I remember when I thought paying $1.35 for a gallon of gas was a ripoff, that was in 1997.

I don't require thanks or recognition for things I do... To make the world a better place, I try to make at least one person smile every day, help people in need, raise a beautiful and caring child who sees the good in everything around her...

I'm just me. I wouldn't be happy if I weren't doing what I can to help others. I'm sure a lot of people feel that way.