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Start your week on a positive note with these weekly poems offering encouragement, inspiration, and thoughtful words about many different experiences in life. A poem can give us something meaningful to reflect on as a new week begins.
The poems in this collection touch on Christmas, life, love, success, kindness, birthdays, faith, and the importance of having someone who cares. Some offer encouragement for the days ahead, while others simply remind us to appreciate the people and blessings in our lives.
Dr. John Brown wrote, "Poetry is the expression of the beautiful - by words - the beautiful of the outer and of the inner world; whatever is delectable to the eye or the ear, the every sense of the body and of the soul — it presides over veras dulcedines rerum. It implies at once a vision and a faculty, a gift and an art. There must be the vivid conception of the beautiful, and its fit manifestation in language. A thought may be poetical, and yet not poetry; it may be a sort of mother liquor, holding in solution the poetical element, but waiting and wanting its precipitation, — its concentration into the bright and compacted crystal.
It is the very blossom and fragrancy and bloom of all human thoughts, passions, emotions, language; having for its immediate object — its very essence — pleasure and delectation rather than truth; but springing from truth, as the flower from its fixed and unseen root."
Reading a poem each week is a simple way to pause, reflect, and find a little encouragement. We hope these poems bring a positive thought to your week. You may also enjoy our Weekly Quotes.
Updated September 17, 2026, by Catherine Pulsifer.
In Bethlehem, a star did gleam,
A symbol of hope, a timeless dream.
As we gather 'neath the Christmas glow,
A Merry Christmas, may it bestow.
The warmth of love, like candle's flame,
Ignites our hearts in Jesus' name.
A Merry Christmas, sincere and bright,
May it bring you sheer delight.
So let's rejoice and spread good cheer,
For Christmas blessings far and near.
In 2024, may joy take flight,
Wishing you happiness, pure and bright.
Christmas is here, a time of delight,
When hearts are warm and spirits take flight.
With twinkling lights and snowflakes so pure,
The magic of Christmas we all adore.
Gather 'round the tree, with loved ones near,
Exchanging gifts and spreading cheer.
We wish Merry Christmas to all, far and near,
May the season bring you happiness and cheer.
Counting down the days until Christmas morn,
Excitement building, spirits lifted high,
Advent calendar doors open one by one,
Each day a step closer to joy untied.
Lights twinkle, carols fill the air so sweet,
The magic of the season has taken its seat.
With every passing moment, our hearts alight,
For soon it will be Christmas, oh what a delight!
Life is full of pleasure,
Life is full of dreams,
Life is full of trouble
As the earth is full of streams.
Yet life has its problems,
And like a dream unknown,
Yet as you travel onward,
You will find many stepping stones.
And when the journey is over,
And life's short day is done
If you look toward the west,
You will see the setting sun.
Life is a privilege. Its youthful days
Shine with the radiance of continuous Mays.
To live, to breathe, to wonder and desire,
To feed with dreams the heart’s perpetual fire,
To thrill with virtuous passions, and to glow
With great ambitions–in one hour to know
The depths and heights of feeling–God! in truth,
How beautiful, how beautiful is youth!
Life is a privilege. Like some rare rose
The mysteries of the human mind unclose.
What marvels lie in earth, and air, and sea!
What stores of knowledge wait our opening key!
What sunny roads of happiness lead out
Beyond the realms of indolence and doubt!
And what large pleasures smile upon and bless
The busy avenues of usefulness!
Life is a privilege. Though noontide fades
And shadows fall along the winding glades,
Though joy-blooms wither in the autumn air,
Yet the sweet scent of sympathy is there.
Pale sorrow leads us closer to our kind,
And in the serious hours of life we find
Depths in the souls of men which lend new worth
And majesty to this brief span of earth.
Life is a privilege. If some sad fate
Sends us alone to seek the exit gate,
If men forsake us and as shadows fall,
Still does the supreme privilege of all
Come in that reaching upward of the soul
To find the welcoming Presence at the goal,
And in the Knowledge that our feet have trod
Paths that led from, and must wind back, to God.
The greatest gift that is given to man
Is someone to care;
When you hope and dream, when you work and plan,
Someone to care;
Someone to care when the day is long,
Someone to care when you're glad with song -
When the world goes right, when the world goes wrong
Someone to care.
You can seek the top of the highest hill
With someone to care;
You can see the good, you can bear the ill,
With someone to care.
The dark may come or the gale may sting
But, what the day or the night may bring
You still are blessed with a sweeter thing -
Someone to care.
For never a loss will seem a loss,
With someone to care;
And never a cross will seem a cross,
With someone to care;
Someone to care when your heart is glad,
The ones who won were the ones who had
Someone to care.
We need not gold if we have but this -
Someone to care;
We shall have our joy though the goal we miss,
With someone to care.
If there be but one with a faith that's true,
If there be but one who believes in you,
That love will lift and will bring you through -
Someone to care.
For what is the use of it all without
Someone to care?
When you're jailed with hope or are dark with doubt,
Someone to care?
What is the good, of it all unless
There's someone to share your happiness,
Someone to care when you win success,
Someone to care!
To succeed is to make a living
At work that interests you.
The work that interest you
May not make you rich.
What of that?
The wise man learns to live.
The shrewd man learns to make money.
But the man who has learned to live is happy.
Because his work interests him, it is not work at all!
Life is a journey of joys and sorrows
All paths in life will have bends and turns
We travel down roads that lead to tomorrow
Fate winds us through lessons hard to learn
Though trials may fill us with grief or woe
It’s our role to ride them out, head held high
For each bump in the road is part of the show
With moments of love and laughter close by
Our voyage has highs and lows
But its ours to enjoy
As we go through life up mountains climb,
Carry on without alloy.
Success can be a tricky thing,
Time must be managed the right way,
From procrastination, it must flee,
Assignments toil and struggle-free
Hard work is the path to gain,
Time management isn't a pain,
All successes have their due date,
Success in time will dominate.
In a world that's often busy and fast,
Kindness is a treasure that will forever last.
Let love guide you in every step you take,
And spread smiles like sunshine, for kindness' sake.
This week, be a beacon of warmth and care,
Share compassion freely, everywhere.
With gentle words and gestures, big or small,
You can make a difference, touching hearts overall.
Embrace the power of a genuine smile,
It can mend broken spirits, even just for a while.
Reach out to others, in times of joy or strife,
And be the reason someone finds hope in their life.
So, let love be the language you speak,
Illuminate darkness, restore the weak.
This week, let kindness be your guiding light,
And spread love's magic, shining ever so bright.
Whether in childhood or when you grow older,
Whether in summer or when it grows colder,
Whether in sunshine or lightning and thunder,
Be it on land or sea over or under,
Whether winter frosts freeze you or summer heat smother,
This you will find until life's cord will sunder,
Life is but one darn thing after another.
Whether you cry from grief or smile with laughter
Think of the present or past or hereafter,
Whether you're rooming or whether house-keeping,
Sewing or darning or dusting or sweeping,
Dreaming of yours or some other girl's brother,
This you will find whether waking or sleeping,
Life is but one darn thing after another.
If you have peace of mind or if you worry,
If things move slowly or if in a hurry,
If you make hasty steps or if you tarry,
If you stay single or if you marry,
Whether you barren be, whether a mother,
This you will find whate'er hap or miscarry,
Life is but one darn thing after another.
Today, while cleaning cupboards
Not knowing where to start
I suddenly decided
To clean the cupboards of my heart.
I threw out Criticism
To the trash pile, to the fire
I put in Appreciation
And worthwhile thought to inspire.
I threw out Condemnation,
Which says, "You're wrong, I'm right."
I put in Consideration
For all folks, brown, black, and white.
Yes, out to went Complaining
Grumbling about trivial things.
I put in Smiles and Laughter
To ease the tension each day brings.
Friends, let's all clean out our cupboards
With help from God above,
Throw out Pride and Hatred, too,
Put in Humility and Love.
What is a birthday? Just a day that says a year has flown.
From our life's experience in the great unknown.
We wait for it each happy year, we welcome it, and then.
'Tis gone - a tender memory - and so we wait again.
We feel no consciousness of change, so silently they fly.
Those little days, those magic days that make the years go by.
The same desires and interest, the same thoughts fill our mind.
Our motives are the same as in the day just left behind.
We love today the self-same things we love a day ago.
There's nothing new in what we do, the self same tasks we know.
The self-same friendships fill our lives in much the self-same way.
We work, we eat, we sleep, and mark no change from day to day.
Yes, so it seems. Yet poor indeed were we if this were true.
If really each succeeding year should bring us nothing new.
If birthdays ever gliding by should leave us just the same.
Without some rich experience because each birthday came.
A new week gives us another opportunity to choose how we will approach the days ahead. A few encouraging words can help us begin with a more hopeful outlook.
Some weeks bring celebration while others bring challenges. These poems remind us to appreciate the joyful moments and keep moving forward when the road becomes difficult.
Having someone who cares can make both happiness and hardship easier to share. Kindness, friendship, encouragement, and love can make a meaningful difference in another person's week.
How we use our time, treat other people, and respond to life's circumstances can influence the week ahead. Positive choices made one day at a time can gradually shape our lives.
Find more poetry and quotes for each month, special occasions, and everyday encouragement.
A new week can bring opportunities, challenges, celebrations, and unexpected changes. Taking a few moments to read an encouraging poem can give us a thought to carry with us as we move through the days ahead.
May these weekly poems remind you to appreciate life's blessings, keep going through its challenges, and share a little kindness along the way. Return each week whenever you need a few words of encouragement, reflection, or inspiration.
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