Author: Joseph M. Brennan Jr.

☆°▪︎ STONE PRIDE ▪︎°☆

Posted on by Joseph M. Brennan Jr.

They

only

–

–

beat

.

a

n

d

.

strike . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

a

n

d

–

–

–

beat

.

a

n

d

.

strike . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

till

tears

–

–

fill

.

y

o

u

r

.

eyes . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

They

beat

.

a

n

d

.

strike . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

a

n

d

–

–

–

beat

.

a

n

d

.

strike . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

b

u

t

–

–

–

stone

pride

–

–

does

.

n

o

t

.

cry.

Reflection:  This was a popular personal struggle-themed poem that I wrote back in May of 2024. I heard the lyric “They only hit until you cry” in Suzanne Vega’s song “Luka” and this was such a powerful lyric that it inspired me to write this short, simple poem.

A SIMPLE LESSON IN FINANCE: WHY INVESTING INVIGORATES AND DEBT DEVASTATES YOUR FINANCES

Posted on by Joseph M. Brennan Jr.

Here’s a simple lesson in finance for those who might need it: Investing money substantially increases your finances overall while carrying debt does much worse than the opposite. And the difference is astounding.

A simple common expression used to demonstrate how investments grow over time is called “the rule of 72.” The average interest rate expressed as a whole number times the number of years required to double an initial investment equals 72. Let’s take a look at how this simple rule can impact your finances. Let’s start with investing first.

Imagine you invested $10,000 earning 10% interest (10% is a reasonable figure given that the long-term average earned in the stock market has historically been about 10% including dividends – it has been much higher in recent years but at some point it could revert back to its long-term average). This means, using the rule of 72, that your $10,000 initial investment will become $20,000 in 7.2 years (10 x 7.2 = 72), $40,000 in 14.4 years, $80,000 in 21.6 years, and $160,000 in 28.8 years. And that is all from just making a single, one-time, initial investment of $10,000 at the beginning. I want you all to stop and think about that for a moment: Your $10,000 grew to $160,000 by doing nothing else. This is how compound interest works and how you make your money work for you – instead of against you.

Most people will do much better than the above because they will continue adding to their investments over time – and as long as they do not remove money from their investment (a mistake many people make), then the power of compound interest will continue working in their favor.

The above example also illustrates why saving and investing at an early age is very important. And if you want to learn how to how to invest well and create a brighter future with minimal effort, please read this: https://brighterdayslifecoaching.com/how-to-invest-well-and-create-a-brighter-future-with-minimal-effort/

Now, let’s take a look at the opposite side of things to see how debt can devastate your finances. Imagine you had the same $10,000 as credit card debt at a 24% interest rate (24% is a little high by today’s standards – credit card rates presently average about 21% – but are higher for people with lower credit scores) but using 24% simplifies calculations and makes it much easier to compare both sides of the story between investing and debt.

Using the above figures mean, using the same rule of 72, that for your $10,000 in initial debt, you will end up paying $20,000 in 3 years (24 x 3 = 72), $40,000 in 6 years, $80,000 in 9 years, $160,000 in 12 years, $320,000 in 15 years, and $640,000 in 18 years if you didn’t make any payments at all (Note: this is not realistic since most people make at least the minimum payments – which largely reflect the payments on interest only – I’m just trying to demonstrate how much more quickly and deeply debt impacts your finances as compared to investing your money). And that is all just from having an initial debt of $10,000. I want you all to stop and give this some serious thought: Your $10,000 of initial debt grew to $640,000 in only 18 years. This is how debt can quickly, deeply, and easily devastate your finances.

Most people would do much worse than the above because they won’t stop at the initial debt – but will continue adding to their debts over time up until reaching their credit limits – which means the power of compound interest continues working against them.

Let’s now compare the two: In 14.4 years, your $10,000 investment grew to $40,000 but your $10,000 in debt became $320,000 over nearly the same period of time. This illustrates why so many people get so far behind in their finances, and the simple but very important lesson in finance is this: Make your money work for you over the longer term instead of working against you by living with a strong sense of financial discipline – eliminating debt and investing your money instead. I have no objection to people having credit cards and such to help build up their credit scores but get into the practice of paying them off every month so you don’t have to pay interest or fees. If you do this and invest in your future, then you will create a brighter future for yourself and others in your life for the years and decades to come. So, do this if you can.

The bottom line is if you have debt with higher interest rates (i.e., interest rates that approach or exceed the stock market’s 10% long-term average), then you’d be much better off paying that debt off before starting to invest your money in the stock market because that would provide a guaranteed, tax-free return – the only exception to this would be if you have a work-related plan that provides matching funds you will probably want to invest enough to maximize the matching funds you receive since that would essentially be free money. If you have debt with interest rates a several percentage points below the stock market’s 10% long-term average, then you might focus on paying off the debt before investing your money in the stock market if it is shorter-term debt, since stock market gains tend to widely fluctuate over the near term. For longer-term debt (10+ years), you might come out a little ahead if you continue making your debt payments and invest any additional funds you have into the stock market instead of using this money to pay down your debt. When making this determination consider tax implications. For example, Roth IRAs and 401Ks are tax-free accounts which means you can expect the full 10% average gain for the stock market. For taxable standard investment accounts, you’ll pay about 15% for any investment gains sold beyond the one-year timeframe which brings the 10% avarage gain for the stock market down to 8.5%. If you sell prior the one-year mark for standard investment accounts you’ll probably pay much higher taxes since it depends on the income tax bracket you fall into when selling your investment gains. For regular non-Roth IRAs and 401Ks, you’ll probably also pay much higher taxes since it depends on the income tax bracket you fall into whenever you withdraw funds.

Just give all of this some thought and do what you believe would be best for you. When making decisions like this, it might be helpful to consider the stock market overall. For example, if the stock market has been rising over several years and appears to be overpriced and due for a substantial decline, it might make sense to focus more on paying off debt since gains in the stock market could be limited or even negative (see item 2 in the following post for potential indicators to look for: https://brighterdayslifecoaching.com/a-structured-market-based-selling-strategy-for-investing-well-with-minimal-effort/). If the opposite happened and the stock market substantially declined, then it might make sense to focus more on investing in the stock market since outsized gains could be experienced (see item 4 in the following post for potential indicators to look for: https://brighterdayslifecoaching.com/a-structured-market-based-buying-strategy-for-investing-well-with-minimal-effort/).

Again, the above isn’t truly accurate on the debt side of things because it reflects the overall impact if you made no payments at all – I have not factored in the fact that when you make the minimum payments on credit card debt, you are usually paying the interest. So, the interest portion of that debt isn’t working against you the way the much larger debt portion is. However, the interest only payments tend to be quite large (and provide no benefit since they typically pay little to nothing down on the debt portion) and, between that and the debt overall, it would still have a devastating effect on your finances as a whole in a short amount of time and would have required a more complicated calculation to get more precise numbers. I’m really just trying to illustrate the basic concepts of investing versus debt using simple calculations so that people can easily understand why debt can be so devastating in a short amount of time and why the power of compound interest works in their favor on the investment side of things. Also, rest assured the credit card companies will cut you off long before you reach such excessive numbers in terms of your debt to them for their own, financial well-being. However, the impact to your finances would be substantial.

You can read more about my finance and investing tips here: https://brighterdayslifecoaching.com/category/financial-planning-management-and-investing-related-posts/

You can learn about my investing techniques via my “Invest Like a Pro in 10 Minutes a Day!” series of 4 books where you can learn the “end to end” process to investing: https://brighterdayslifecoaching.com/published-books-and-life-coaching-services/.

And, lastly, you can read about my stock market activities here: https://brighterdayslifecoaching.com/stock-market-activities

I wish you much finance and investing success for 2024 (and beyond!).

#selfimprovement #selfhelp #selfdevelopment #intention #fulfillment #success #inspiration #happiness #mindfulness #peace #joy #positivethinking #balance #finance #stocks #investing #stockmarket #bonds #bondmarket

☆°▪︎ THE RELENTLESS ROAD (OF HOPE) ▪︎°☆

Posted on by Joseph M. Brennan Jr.

I

woke

.

u

p

.

alone . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

a

n

d

–

–

–

far

away

.

f

r

o

m

.

home . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

I

woke

.

u

p

.

far

away

.

f

r

o

m

.

home . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

a

n

d

–

–

–

alone . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

The

miles

–

–

ahead

stretched

.

l

o

n

g

e

r

.

along

.

t

h

e

.

road

–

–

–

.

.

.

a

n

d

–

–

–

the

breath

.

o

f

.

time

began

.

t

o

.

s ~ l ~ o ~ w . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ yes,

there

were

.

l

o

n

g

e

r

.

miles

.

t

o

.

go . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

all

along

–

–

that

road . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

where

.

t

h

e

.

breath

.

o

f

.

time

began

.

t

o

.

s ~ l ~ o ~ w . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ where

.

t

h

e

.

breath

.

o

f

.

time

began

.

t

o

.

s ~ l ~ o ~ w . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

because

blow

.

a

f

t

e

r

.

blow . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

t

h

e

–

–

–

shadows

swallow . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

The

shadows

swallow . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

when

you’re

.

d

o

w

n

.

so

deep . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ when

you’re

.

d

o

w

n

.

so

low . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

The

shadows

swallow . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

The

shadows

swallow . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

s

o

–

–

–

blow,

.

a

f

t

e

r

.

blow,

.

a

f

t

e

r

.

blow . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

you

have

.

t

o

.

fight

.

f

o

r

.

every

mile

.

o

f

.

that

relentless

road . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

Blow,

.

a

f

t

e

r

.

blow,

.

a

f

t

e

r

.

blow . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

you

have

.

t

o

.

hope

–

–

even

when

–

–

time

begins

.

t

o

.

s ~ l ~ o ~ w . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ you

have

.

t

o

.

fight

.

f

o

r

.

every

mile

.

o

f

.

that

road . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

a

n

d

–

–

–

hope

when

–

–

time

begins

.

t

o

.

s ~ l ~ o ~ w . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

t

o

–

–

–

find

.

y

o

u

r

.

way

.

b

a

c

k

.

home . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

t

o

–

–

–

find

.

y

o

u

r

.

way

.

b

a

c

k

.

home . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

blow,

.

a

f

t

e

r

.

blow,

.

a

f

t

e

r

.

blow.

Reflection:  This was a popular inspiration/hope-themed poem I wrote back in April of 2024. Sometimes, when I travel, I reconnect with various music artists of the past. For some reason, Bruce Springsteen kept coming up on the Portugal trip I took in early-to-mid 2024. Much of his music has an honest reflective but melancholy vibe to it. That’s part of what I have loved about his music. This poem came to me while listening to some of his music. I wrote it sort of as a tribute to Bruce while playing some of his songs in the background at low volume. The primary ones that I played to inspire the writing of this poem were: “Downbound Train” and “One Step Up.” I played these songs in the background at low volume to create the “moodset” for the poem. If you listen to these songs at low volume while reading this poem, you might better get the “feel” of it.

☆°▪︎ THE SEEMING ETERNITY (OF SPRING) ▪︎°☆

Posted on by Joseph M. Brennan Jr.

The

peaceful

ease

.

o

f

.

those

dancing

dreams

–

–

that

made

.

u

s

.

feel

.

s

o

.

effortlessly

free . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

would

sing

.

s

o

.

sweet

.

a

n

d

.

serene

.

f

o

r

.

all

the

days

–

–

that

would

seed

.

a

n

d

.

breed . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

a

n

d

–

–

–

breed

.

a

n

d

.

seed . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

t

h

e

–

–

–

seeming

eternity . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ the

seeming

eternity . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

o

f

–

–

–

spring . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

It

would

sing . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

It

would

sing . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

It

would

sing . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

f

o

r

–

–

–

the

seeming

eternity

.

o

f

.

spring . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ the

seeming

eternity

.

o

f

.

spring . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

now

sinking

carelessly . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ now

sinking

carelessly . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

beneath

.

t

h

e

.

storming

seas . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ beneath

.

t

h

e

.

storming

seas . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

o

f

–

–

–

reali~

tease.

Reflection: 

This is a reflection-themed poem largely associated with the melancholy of looking back on a past that once seemed so carefree, dreamy, vibrant, and free. The contemplator views his/her present life with a sense of dread that it is so filled with day-to-day tasks, work, and responsibilities that there is little or no time for fun, freedom, and dreams – and he/she wonders if that will ever change.

While on a trip to Portugal, I was listening to various musicians I hadn’t heard in a while. One of those was Bruce Springsteen. I had forgotten how moving his music and lyrics were. So, I thought I’d try to write something as a tribute to him while playing some of his songs in the background at low volume. The primary ones were: “Jungleland,” “Backstreets,” “Downbound Train,” “My Hometown,” “Point Blank,” “The River,” “One Step Up,” “Thunder Road,” and “Atlantic City.” I played these songs in the background to create the “moodset” for the poem and inspire the writing of the poem. So, if you listen to one or more of these songs at low volume while reading this poem, you might better get the “feel” of it.

HOW TO INVEST WELL AND CREATE A BRIGHTER FUTURE WITH MINIMAL EFFORT

Posted on by Joseph M. Brennan Jr.

Over the past couple of weeks, I have been traveling through Portugal and have met some very nice people. And once they find out I’m a life coach, many of them have become very interested in any financial advice I can provide to help them create a brighter future. So, this inspired me to write the “Joe Brennan 6-Step Process to Financial Success” with minimal effort:

1. Get into the practice of automatically saving a minimum of 20% of everything you earn – wages, gifts, tips, whatever. The 20%+ automatic savings is important because it forces financial discipline – resulting in a greater ability to accumulate financial wealth and achieve financial freedom much sooner than would be experienced otherwise. In fact, if you have kids and get them into this practice at a very young age, then this would serve to not only benefit them, but you as well since you won’t have to worry so much about their finances, and they won’t have to rely on you as much in the years and decades to come. The earlier you start saving, the less of your overall income percentage-wise you would need to save over the years of your life. I generally recommend 20% for people who start at the age of 20 and increase it by 1% per year if they start later than age 20. So, if you start at age 24 you need to save 24%, if you start at age 31 you need to save 31%, and if you start at age 41 you need to save 41% for the rest of your life. So, the earlier you start, the less of your overall income you have to save percentage-wise over the years of your life. So, if you start at age 20, you can save 20% for the rest of your life and be in good shape financially speaking – but if you start at age 34, you’ll need to save 34% for the rest of your life. So, the earlier you start, the better. And the percentages above include any matching funds or financial incentives your employer might provide (some employers provide up to 5% or so of matching funds and such for retirement plans so be sure to always do this first – this is free money! And always choose the Roth option if you have a choice unless you are in a higher tax bracket than anticipated at retirement. You never have to pay taxes on gains for Roth accounts).

Let me provide some examples to demonstrate how investing will help you. Let’s assume you live in Mississippi, and your annual wages are $44,966 (this is the lowest average annual wage in the U.S. for 2025 and is used just as an example to show that even lower wages can grow wealth over time). A 20% savings rate would be $749 per month. Using an investment calculator such as https://www.calculator.net/investment-calculator.html shows that if you invested your money using the long-term average annual gain in the S&P500 Index of 10% per year (including dividends), then you would have:

a. $1.5M in about 42 years if you saved $187 per month (5%).

b. $1.5M in about 35.5 years if you saved $375 per month (10%).

c. $1.5M in about 29 years if you saved $749 per month (20%).

d. $1.5M in about 25 years if you saved $1,124 per month (30%).

Most investors would do much better than the above due to the fact your annual income is likely to exceed that of the Mississippi average at some point, and you will probably continue increasing the amount you save as your annual income increases. So, be sure to do this for yourself if you can.

2. Open investment accounts at an online broker to place your money in such that it earns a decent interest rate (I earn about 5% interest via my standard trading account). The reason this is important is because you don’t want to fall behind inflation when saving money. A lot of banks pay much less interest than online brokerage trading/investment accounts do. I presently use fidelity.com but have also used Ally and Robinhood in the past. All of these have $0 fees for trading/investing but Fidelity has, in addition, more options for fixed income – something some people might have interest in later in life once they’ve accumulated a considerable sum. It’s helpful having just one online broker for all of your accounts so you don’t have to go back and forth across brokers and keep track of multiple statements and tax documents. So, take some time and choose wisely. A minimum of two types of investment accounts should be opened:

a. Roth IRA Investment Account: You’ll want to max out what is put into this account every year because all gains are tax free. The downside is that any gains cannot be withdrawn until age 59.5 without being penalized – there are some exceptions to this and any contributions you provide can be withdrawn at any time without penalty. As such, this account needs to be used primarily for your long-term future. Here’s one source outlining the Roth IRA rules: https://www.investopedia.com/articles/personal-finance/081615/basics-roth-ira-contribution-rules.asp. The max contribution and income limits tend to adjust upwards every year so be sure to check every year to see what they are before making annual contributions. In addition to the Roth IRA, a 529 plan might be of interest if you want to save for your children’s education. It works like a Roth IRA, but you can withdraw at any time to support various educational expenses (k-12, college, etc.). There are a lot of sources about this. Here’s one: https://www.savingforcollege.com/intro-to-529s/name-the-top-7-benefits-of-529-plans?fbclid=IwAR3FkVxhx5oTzY_Hut1mN5-iHV2nBVp-IfzMNLPrBbf9IT-s71jSpYRqYbA.

b. Standard Trading/Investment Account: Any additional funds you have can be placed into a standard trading/investing account. These funds can be withdrawn at any time – even though it serves people best to leave it there until they reach their financial goals – but taxes have to be paid on all gains earned (a 15% tax for gains on everything held longer than a year – or a tax based on your income tax bracket for gains on anything held less than a year before selling: https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/taxes/capital-gains-tax-rates?fbclid=IwY2xjawNiC-wBHVa9mVDFCZH9jBECfhZMHyirLIueisWakRlxOQTWoeJy1Q54dmDf-YOFag).

After maximizing your employer match (see last sentence in first paragraph of step 1 above), I recommend maxing out the Roth IRA every year, and then placing any excess funds you have available into the standard account.

3. When you’re ready to start buying investments, become an expert by reviewing, understanding, and executing this structured, market-based, investment buying strategy: https://brighterdayslifecoaching.com/a-structured-market-based-buying-strategy-for-investing-well-with-minimal-effort/.

4. Become an expert on selling investments by reviewing, understanding, and executing this structured, market-based, investment selling strategy: https://brighterdayslifecoaching.com/a-structured-market-based-selling-strategy-for-investing-well-with-minimal-effort/.

5. Only pull money from your investment accounts when substantial gains are experienced and only for that which invests in your future such as a down payment for a house, educational expenses likely to lead to a higher paying job, rental properties as an investment, a new business you want for yourself, or after reaching your long-term financial freedom or retirement goal.

6. Repeat steps 1-4 for any new savings accumulated.

The above is a good process for getting your finances and investments in order. If you are in your mid-thirties or so (or even less – the younger you are, the better you will likely do over time), then this process will get you where you need to be in your life financially speaking. However, there is never a guarantee, and you might want to adjust this process over time. If you elect to take a higher risk approach, then you can earn substantial gains if you wait things out – although you might experience substantial losses in the near term. If you elect to take a lower risk approach, then you may not experience substantial losses in the near term but will probably not make as much in gains over the longer term.

The reason the above process works so well for so many people is that in the first few years of investing, the amount saved matters much more than the actual gains or losses experienced in the stock market. As such, people can just save and wait for a substantial stock market drop to invest and try out various investment options and techniques early on without it affecting their finances much. If they do, they will probably become a much more successful investor over the longer run. Once savings have been accumulated for a few years or so, then the gains and losses experienced matter increasingly more over time. For example, things become more interesting once you have $100k in savings. Using the long-term, stock market average return of 10%, $100k becomes $200k in about 7.2 years, $400k in 14.4 years, $800k in 21.6 years, and $1.6M in 28.8 years. The overall stock market rarely achieves the average return in a single year – it’s usually either much higher or much lower than its average in any one year.

February 2025 update: Investing expert Charlie Munger’s advice back in 1998 was to do whatever it takes to get to $100,000 and the rest of your investing growth will be easy over the years due to the power of compound interest (you can read about that here: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/charlie-munger-said-hardest-part-193015265.html). I wholeheartedly agree with him except $200,000 is the number you need to get to in today’s 2025 dollars. It’s very difficult getting to that number, but once you do, you’ll experience substantial growth in your investments. So, do that for yourself if you can. Because once you get to $200,000, it will only take about 21 years to grow that to $1.6M if you stay invested in a stock market that earns the long-term average of 10% per year (including dividends).

The above process is not perfect, but give it a try, make adjustments over time, and if you need help with any of this just ask.

You can learn about all of my investing techniques via my “Invest Like a Pro in 10 Minutes a Day!” series of 4 books where you can learn the “end to end” process to investing: https://brighterdayslifecoaching.com/published-books-and-life-coaching-services/.

Also, you can read all about my stock market activities here: https://brighterdayslifecoaching.com/stock-market-activities.

I wish you much investing success for 2024 (and beyond!).

selfimprovement #selfhelp #selfdevelopment #intention #fulfillment #success #inspiration #happiness #mindfulness #peace #joy #positivethinking #balance #finance #stocks #investing #stockmarket #bonds #bondmarket

☆°▪︎ BLINDED BY THE SMILE ▪︎°☆

Posted on by Joseph M. Brennan Jr.

Tonight,

I

wear

–

–

the

smile

–

–

that

lies . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ the

smile

–

–

that

hides

.

a

n

d

.

denies

.

t

h

e

.

darkness

–

–

behind

.

t

h

e

.

light . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ the

bitter

–

–

behind

.

t

h

e

.

bright . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ the

rye

–

–

behind

.

t

h

e

.

rhyme . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

a

n

d

–

–

–

you

.

w

i

l

l

.

bite . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

a

n

d

–

–

–

you

.

w

i

l

l

.

buy . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ you

.

w

i

l

l

.

bite

.

a

n

d

.

buy . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

blinded

.

b

y

.

the

wine . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ blinded

.

b

y

.

the

promise

.

o

f

.

daylight . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

f

o

r

–

–

–

tonight,

I

wear

–

–

the

smile

–

–

that

lies . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ the

smile

–

–

that

hides

.

a

n

d

.

denies . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

I

smile.

Reflection: This is a personal struggle-themed poem written largely a reflection on those who routinely hide the pain and struggles they might be going through because they fear judgment or rejection. It’s sad that so many would rather suffer, and struggle alone – creating distance instead of risking allowing others to get close to them or to do or say something which might be helpful and depriving these potential helpers the joy of being a friend and doing something they could feel good about.

I wrote most of this poem by listening to the wonderful song “Disarm” by The Smashing Pumpkins which I played in the background to create the “moodset” for the poem and inspire the writing of the poem. So, if you listen to the song at low volume while reading this poem, you might better get the “feel” of it.

☆°▪︎ THE FALL OF WINTERTIME ▪︎°☆

Posted on by Joseph M. Brennan Jr.

I

still

–

–

recall

the

.

f

a

l

l

.

of

wintertime . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

f

o

r

–

–

–

it

.

w

a

s

.

the

.

f

a

l

l

.

of

wintertime . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

when

.

y

o

u

r

.

eyes

–

–

burned

.

s

o

.

bright . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ when

.

y

o

u

r

.

eyes

–

–

burned

.

s

o

.

bright . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

with

a

smile . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

f

o

r

–

–

–

another

guy . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

Your

eyes

–

–

burned

bright . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

Your

eyes

–

–

burned

bright . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

Your

eyes

–

–

burned

bright . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

with

a

smile . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

f

o

r

–

–

–

another

guy . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

I

still

–

–

recall

the

.

f

a

l

l

.

of

wintertime . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

I

still

–

–

recall

the

.

f

a

l

l

.

of

wintertime . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

I

still

–

–

recall

the

.

f

a

l

l

.

of

wintertime . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

f

o

r

–

–

–

that

.

w

a

s

.

the

.

l

a

s

t

.

time . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ yes,

that

.

w

a

s

.

the

.

l

a

s

t

.

time . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

I

saw

–

–

your

eyes

–

–

burn

.

s

o

.

bright . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

with

a

smile.

Reflection:  This was a popular melancholy-themed poem written back in March of 2024 about a fading romance and the sinking feelings that can come with it. I wrote most of this poem by listening to the wonderful, haunting gem of a song “Your Worst Song is Your Greatest Hit” by The Reds, the Pinks and Purples which I played in the background to create the “moodset” and inspire the writing of the poem. If you listen to the song at low volume while reading this poem, you might better get the “feel” of it.

☆°▪︎ BURIED IN THE DEEP (A PEACE WITHIN REACH) ▪︎°☆

Posted on by Joseph M. Brennan Jr.

It

.

w

a

s

.

hard

.

t

o

.

tell

you . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

everything

that

.

w

a

s

.

badly

burned

.

a

n

d

.

buried

.

i

n

.

the

deep . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

It

.

w

a

s

.

hard

.

t

o

.

tell

you . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

b

u

t

–

–

–

now,

I

.

c

a

n

.

see

.

a

n

d

.

feel

a

peace

–

–

within

reach . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ I

.

c

a

n

.

see

.

a

n

d

.

feel

a

peace

–

–

within

reach . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

beneath

the

seas

–

–

where

anxiety

sleeps . . . 

–

–

–

.

.

.

a

n

d

–

–

–

I

can

.

n

o

w

.

believe . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ I

can

.

n

o

w

.

believe . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

i

n

–

–

–

the

dream . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ I

can

.

n

o

w

.

believe . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

i

n

–

–

–

the

dream . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

while

.

i

t

.

still

–

–

newly

breathes . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ while

.

i

t

.

still

–

–

newly

breathes . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ while

.

i

t

.

still

–

–

newly

breathes . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

a

n

d

–

–

–

before

.

i

t

.

begins

.

t

o

.

bleed . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

It

.

w

a

s

.

hard

.

t

o

.

tell

you . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

everything

that

.

w

a

s

.

badly

burned

.

a

n

d

.

buried

.

i

n

.

the

deep . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

It

.

w

a

s

.

hard

–

t

o

–

tell

you . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

b

u

t

–

–

–

now,

I

.

c

a

n

.

see

.

a

n

d

.

feel

a

peace

–

–

within

reach.

Reflection: This was an inspirational/hope-themed poem which largely reflects the rush of hope and relief a sufferer secretly carrying a heavy burden can experience when he/she is finally able to find someone to share it with. I wrote most of this poem by listening to the wonderful song “Hard to Tell You” by Warpaint which I played in the background to create the “moodset” for the poem and inspire the writing of the poem. So, if you listen to the song at low volume while reading this poem, you might better get the “feel” of it.

☆°▪︎ CURIOSITY CLEARLY SEES (AND WARMLY BELIEVES) ▪︎°☆

Posted on by Joseph M. Brennan Jr.

Curiosity

crumbles

.

t

h

e

.

walls

.

o

f

.

hostility,

–

–

–

.

.

.

judgment,

–

–

–

.

.

.

a

n

d

–

–

–

jealousy . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

Curiosity

leaps

.

f

a

r

.

beyond

.

t

h

e

.

valleys

–

–

that

blame . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

a

n

d

–

–

–

shame . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

a

n

d

–

–

–

defame . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

a

n

d

–

–

–

demean . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

Curiosity

celebrates

–

–

every

direction

.

o

f

.

differing . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

a

n

d

–

–

–

every

color

.

o

f

.

diversity . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

Curiosity

loves

.

a

n

d

.

values

–

–

everyone

.

a

n

d

.

everything . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

Curiosity

clearly

sees

.

a

n

d

.

warmly

believes

–

–

that

every

–

–

form

.

o

f

.

humanity

.

i

s

.

free . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

Curiosity

clearly

sees

.

a

n

d

.

warmly

believes . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

Curiosity

clearly

sees

.

a

n

d

.

warmly

believes . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

Curiosity

clearly

sees

.

a

n

d

.

warmly

believes . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

i

n

–

–

–

every

life

–

–

that

breathes.

Reflection: This was an inspiration/hope-themed poem. I wrote most of this poem by reflecting on a Yahoo Finance article featuring an interview with Scott Shigeoka – a curiosity expert and author of the new book “Seek: How Curiosity Can Transform Your Life and Change the World.”

☆°▪︎ BLISTERS, BURNS, AND BLURS (A SCREAM BEHIND THE DOOR) ▪︎°☆

Posted on by Joseph M. Brennan Jr.

I

remember

feeling . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ I

remember

feeling

.

t

h

i

s

.

way

before . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

I

felt

.

t

h

i

s

.

way

before . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

w

h

e

n

–

–

–

I

.

f

e

l

l

.

beneath

.

t

h

e

.

floor . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ I

.

f

e

l

l

.

beneath

.

t

h

e

.

floor . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

a

n

d

–

–

–

screamed

behind

.

t

h

e

.

door . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ I

screamed

behind

.

t

h

e

.

door . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

b

u

t

–

–

–

could

.

n

o

t

.

rise

above

.

t

h

e

.

roar . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ I

could

.

n

o

t

.

rise

above

.

t

h

e

.

roar . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

s

o

–

–

–

I

continued

.

t

o

.

fight

.

t

h

e

.

war . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ I

continued

.

t

o

.

fight

.

t

h

e

.

war . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

a

n

d

–

–

–

now

I

stand

upon

–

–

a

distant

shore . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ I

stand

upon

–

–

a

distant

shore . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

far

away

.

f

r

o

m

.

the

blisters,

–

–

burns,

.

.

a

n

d

.

.

blurs . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ far

away

.

f

r

o

m

.

the

whispered

words

.

.

a

n

d

.

.

hurts . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

arguing

.

f

o

r

.

less

than

.

m

y

.

worth . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

b

u

t

–

–

–

for

more

–

–

than

I

deserved . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ they

argued

.

f

o

r

.

less

than

.

m

y

.

worth . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

b

u

t

–

–

–

for

more

–

–

than

I

deserved . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

It

was

–

–

more

than

–

–

I

deserved . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

It

was

–

–

more

than

–

–

I

deserved . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

It

was

–

–

more

than

–

–

I

deserved . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

f

o

r

–

–

–

I

was

.

a

t

.

my

worst . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

I

remember

feeling . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ I

remember

feeling

.

t

h

i

s

.

way

before . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

I

felt

.

t

h

i

s

.

way

before . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

w

h

e

n

–

–

–

I

.

f

e

l

l

.

beneath

.

t

h

e

.

floor . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

 ~ when

.

 I

.

f

e

l

l

.

beneath

.

t

h

e

.

floor . . .

–

–

–

.

.

.

a

n

d

–

–

–

screamed

behind

.

t

h

e

.

door.

Reflection: This was a personal struggle-themed poem largely reflective of an ongoing, internal struggle – from some kind of trauma that was experienced previously. It continues to resurface and the anxious sufferer senses another episode is on the way. Many people who have either experienced trauma or who have helped others in these regards will probably relate strongly to this poem.

I wrote most of this poem by listening to the wonderful, haunting gem of a song “No End to Love” by Orlando Weeks which I played in the background to create the “moodset” for the poem, and inspire the writing of the poem. So, if you listen to the song at low volume while reading this poem, you might better get the “feel” of it.