The purpose of this book of poetry is that while I was in the military, I read poems by the then poet laureate of the United States. I used him as my mentor. These poems reflect the inside of me; sometimes lonely, sometimes in love, but mostly wondering what life is all about, which I am sure we all wonder. If you have any questions, please feel free to call me at 219-286-7377. I thank you for purchasing this book and hope that Our Heavenly Father will always be at your side.

In my poetry, I, the writer, search for answers to life's questions. The Poetry of Life II, sometimes emotional, sometimes playful, is based on my personal feelings, observations, and experiences in my life and travels. It is a book about everyday occurrences, such as love, relationships, hunger, poverty, war, nature, and death. The poem "Memory" describes lovers separated by time and distance, while their love remains strong. The poems "Lover's Prayer," "Lover's Thanks," "Lover's Questions," "Response," and "Soulmate," describe the openness between two lovers. "Celestial" tells of a love that is unattainable. Nature, a mysterious power in the poems "Cry of the Ancients" and "O'Moon," contains secrets of Mother Earth. The poems "Hope," "Faith," and "Paradise Lost" reminds us that no matter how bad things are, no matter what humanity does, there is always hope for the "Salvation of Humankind."

Words have the power to build us up and give us the source of encouragement, motivation and inspiration we need when facing challenges and hard times in life. Sometimes all it takes is that little bit of faith to ignite the spark of hope in our hearts as we keep the fire within us burning and the will to survive going strong. Words To Heal is a collection of quotes, thoughts, and poetry that I put together to help others heal, to empower them, to inspire them, to motivate them and to offer a positive glimpse of life as we see that there's so much more to life then we know and that anything is possible when we believe.

This is the extraordinary true tale of a middle-class, gay American's path to encounters with the Great Mystery that is God/dess/Self. The way to the Great Unknown was intricately intertwined with his humanity with all its foibles, and with human relationships. Therefore this story has to include those relationships, revealing ultimately how a one's personal identity and relationships become vehicles for enlightenment. This inspiring account of struggle, travel to exotic lands, suffering, and transcendence holds out hope for anyone who has ever felt outcaste, broken, or unworthy, demonstrating for our modern times that enlightenment lies within reach of us all.

Life is full of beauty that is sometimes too beautiful for our eyes to see. Even so, if we look closely, we slowly begin to see a sharper image of things we may never have noticed before. Sometimes it takes more than just looking. Sometimes it takes words to change what we see through our eyes. The strength and power of words can help to show us a different view of the way we look at things in life. Through this new collection of poems, Poetry’s Painting of Life, author Juliana Shihadeh hopes to draw a clearer image of the simple beauties of life that are often left unnoticed. Think of your life as a story you are writing; every decision is like opening a door. All it takes is imagination and the clarity of the right words to describe the emotions of the images in our minds. Our Story From the moment our first breath we took, We wrote the first words to our story, To be filled with down days, but oh so full of glory, Back then, those were the first pages to our book. Our story is as any story we read, Except for one difference, if you recall, And that is ... we cannot erase any words that fall, We are happy to be, but we write mistakes oh yes indeed ...

Kahlil Gibran considered The Prophet his greatest achievement. He said: "I think I've never been without The Prophet since I first conceived it in Mount Lebanon. It seems to have been a part of me....I kept the manuscript four years before I delivered it over to my publisher, because I wanted to be sure, I wanted to be very sure, that every word of it was the very best I had to offer." The Chicago Post said of The Prophet: "Cadenced and vibrant with feeling, the words of Kahlil Gibran bring to one's ears the majestic rhythm of Ecclesiastes....If there is a man or woman who can read this book without a quiet acceptance of a great man's philosophy and a singing in the heart as of music born within, that man or woman is indeed dead to life and truth."

"Thanatopsis" is a renowned poem written by William Cullen Bryant, an American poet and editor of the 19th century. First published in 1817 when Bryant was just 17 years old, the poem is considered one of the early masterpieces of American literature. In "Thanatopsis," Bryant explores themes related to death and nature, contemplating the idea of mortality and the interconnectedness of life and death. The title, derived from the Greek words "thanatos" (death) and "opsis" (view), suggests a meditation on the contemplation of death. The poem begins with an invocation to nature, portraying it as a grand and eternal force. Bryant expresses the idea that death is a natural part of the cycle of life, and all living things ultimately return to the earth. He emphasizes the consoling and unifying aspects of death, encouraging readers to view it as a peaceful and harmonious process. "Thanatopsis" reflects the Romantic literary movement's appreciation for nature and its role in shaping human perspectives. Bryant's eloquent language and profound reflections on mortality contribute to the enduring appeal of the poem.

Poetry is a composition of verse with words that are arranged in a variety of shapes and forms. Poetry is that portion of literature which expresses imagination and feelings most intensely.Some poems have a way of being painted memorably into every heart, causing the population to unite, resulting in altering the history of the world. Voltaire, the French satirist and philosopher created: "A fight to survive" type of poetry that ignited the French Revolution. When the Monarch of France finally capitulated in 1799, Voltaire's skeleton was retrieved from the grave and placed on the King's throne. If a reader is moved by a single verse of a poem, then the poet's efforts were never in vain. Some poems are written just for fun and entertainment.

Ignacio started writing as a way to express what he was experiencing. He grew up in sunny Southern California. At a young age he lived with his parents and siblings in Baldwin Park, Ca. As a teenager they all moved to West Covina where he went to Workman High School and had friends that were close enough to inspire him. Starting at a young age there were many words written with a chance to be cherished by close friends and family. By placing himself in the moment and absorbing the feelings around him, he has captured those things that many people think and wish to express but can't find a way. There is true emotion within each word and phrase. There are pictures that develop in the mind to represent what each word is describing. A vision of words that can be read and felt with the not only the mind but the heart.