A BOOK

A book is a ship
of adventure and travel
to far-distant places
with tales to unravel;
a ship on a journey
to strange new lands
to snow-capped mountains
or hot desert sands.

A book is a ship
of your make-believe
to the past or the future
or the fancy you weave.
For a long ocean voyage
and a fabulous trip
to the lighthearted traveler
a book is a ship.

A book is a door
to another room
filled with sunshine
and flowers in bloom.
A door to the world,
to the wide-open spaces
with fields and farms
and brand new faces.
A book is a key
to wondrous treasure
to imagination
and endless pleasure.
When your world seems dull
and your life is a bore
just pick up a book
and open the door.

A book is a mirror
that reflects your being
that shows you the face
that your eyes aren’t seeing.
When you become anxious
to find yourself
the place to look
is a book on the shelf;
for a book is a mirror
in which you will find
the words that express
the thoughts in your mind.
When the image’s distorted
and you want to see clearer
always remember
a book is a mirror.

A book is a ladder
you climb on the way
to a vantage position
forever to stay
above the horizon
overlooking the plain
where graze the unread,
the simple, the plain;
a stairway to knowledge,
laborious at time.
No hill is worthwhile
that is easy to climb.
So rise above
to things that matter.
Each page is a rung
when a book is a ladder.

A book is alive
in the mind of the reader
who imagines himself
as the hero, the leader,
chasing the villain,
hunting the lion,
curing the sick,
the lame and the dying.
A book has a life,
a breath of its own;
but closed it remains
as dead as a stone.
A book is a thing,
an object; unread,
a book that’s unopened
is a book that is dead.

A book is a friend
when you are alone,
a silent companion
a pal of your own
that tells you its secrets
and no one can hear
the words that it reads
soundlessly in your ear.
A book is a friend
we all have in common
that comes to us only
whenever we summon.
Page after page
from beginning to end,
this above all
a book is a friend.

Jay Frankston
wlp@mcn.org