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When John wasn’t working actively to make Southwest Florida a better community for everyone, he enjoyed writing poetry. Here are two of his especially poignant pieces.

I Wish You Enough
(A Blessing)

I wish you enough gain to meet your needs, and ample to share those without enough, But only enough loss to appreciate all that you have now and have not lost.
I wish you enough success to climb to the mountain top, But only enough failure to know the road is rocky not easy, and not all reach the top.
I wish for you enough confidence to know that you are a unique and gifted person, But enough humility, to know these gifts must be nurtured and used for good.
I wish you enough strength for each of your days, But only enough weakness to be patient with yourself and the weakness of others.
I wish you enough sun to keep your attitude bright, even when the day is gray, But only enough rain that you appreciate the sun, and as do plants, by rain, grow stronger.
I wish you enough courage to bring whatever challenges you may face, under control, But only enough fear, that you realize that no one is an island, we can’t do it alone.
I wish you enough happiness and joy to keep your spirit alive, hopeful, and everlasting, But only enough pain that you realize, often the smallest life joys are the most treasured.
I wish you enough love, that you know the life gift we have in love given and received, But only enough rejection, that you understand loneliness, and reject no one in need.
I wish you enough understanding that God is near us always, the choice to call is ours, But only enough self doubt, that you make the choice to call for His help and vision.
I wish you enough of God’s Eternal Peace, to carry you thru life’s deepest waters, But only enough turmoil, that you appreciate the quiet eddies of life.
I wish you enough time to find true friends, and a long lifetime to love them, And enough wisdom to see, that all things in God’s time, have a season and reason.
I wish you enough Faith to know things unseen are alive and real, that God has a plan, And enough self inquiry, to find the Truth that sets you free, to know you are in His plan
I wish then, that you might know that whenever I say to you “Blessings”, or “I Wish You Enough,”
That these are the things, I pray for you!

One Little Thing

One little seed can grow a tree, One little Tree can begin a forest One little smile can make a good day, One little affirming word can change the course of a life.
One little moment of one little day, may be the most important one thing in someone’s life, One little spark can start a glowing and warming fire.
One little idea can change the world,
One little voice can begin a great cause.
One little hand offered can lift one up who is down,
One little release of angered bitterness can cure the angry cancer that is growing within.
One little positive glance can convey an affirming thought,
One little candle can bring darkness into light.
One little hand held squeeze can bring confidence,
One little kiss can make it well.
One little laugh can change an attitude,
One little bit of love shared can become a lifetime of shared joy.
One little embrace can give one immediate comfort,
One little bit of faith can carry someone through the darkest night.
One little touch can ignite a lifeless spirit,
One little forgiveness can bring lasting relief to the hurt, and the one who did the hurt.
One little act of kindness can relieve a tortured soul, One Little life of sharing, passed on can change the world.
ONE SOLITARY LIFE, turned HIS world upside down, and has changed mankind,
YOU CAN BE THAT ONE LITTLE THING TO CHANGE ANOTHER’S WORLD.