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He Sent Down An Angel, vA0

He Sent Down An Angel
…Dan Iroz, vA0, 22Nov05

Down on my bed, staring nowhere,
I can see clearly I’ve not been down this street.
Offered you all of my heart, I held nothing back
Cuz you had me at hello in the July heat

Isn’t it always true, when only one gives their all
They risk a broken heart, they risk it all, and love will fall

Send down an angel, send down an angel,
Send down an angel, Lord please
Send down an angel, send down an angel,
Send down an angel who’ll love me

Down on my knees, three strikes behind me,
Broken and begging for one more swing.
When waltzing right through the wires of my Ethernet
An angel I’ve been aching for, the woman of my dreams

Down in my cool, unfinished basement
Hoping that she’s the one who’ll help finish me
Yes, love is truly blind, even when it sees
And that can be good and bad, but it was good for me

Cuz, he sent down an angel, he sent down an angel
He sent down an angel who sees me
Yes, he sent down an angel, he sent down an angel,
He sent down an angel who loves me

They say that one cannot love, til someone’s broken their heart
Until they’ve risked everything and lost it all. Love will fall,

After the ball, I will not feel small, for I can stand tall,
I honestly gave it my all.

Oh, so lucky for me, that you had me at hello in the July heat.

In the July heat, sweet dusty mesquite, on that soft summer breeze,
Through those shimmering trees

Lucky for me that you had me at hello in the July heat.

Mr. Brown

It would appear I'm NACT's new poet laureate. Go figure.

Mr. Brown
...Dan Iroz,25Jul05,vA5

Mr. Brown, where did you get your grit?
Just who’s genes flow through your veins?
Some old cowboy, one hundred years ago,
And before that… proud pioneer or patriot?

And what of nurture… not nature,
Where were your ethics forged?
On how many Father’s knees
And Mother’s gentle pleas

Were the virtues you defend, refined…
Character traits so rare today, like
Decency, honesty, and reverence…
Like faith, courage, and contentment?

Another good man, I know, once said:
A grateful heart is a beginning of greatness,
An expression of humility... a foundation.
Gary, where did your gratitude come from?

***

And how in Heaven’s name did you raise sons
And a daughter, for Heaven’s sake,
In the middle of debugging someone else’s code
All night? I know it wasn’t always fun.

Betty can account for much of it…sure!
But that remaining thirty percent… how did you do it?
Nights on end waking up under newspapers
With Scott on Lincoln Square’s lab floor?

Even then, you found... and kept her.
How did you manage that?
What’s taking years for me, through more than one,
You’ve had for years, down pat.

And work explains much of it, I know.
It didn’t just come easy,
Like that laugh of yours does,
All fancy free and breezy.

***

I remember you arriving at NACT,
Us reminiscing about the Osmonds,
Who joined us on Sundays
When they were in town with Andy Williams.

Briefly we recalled
A few things in common...
Clark High School, the 28th Ward
And my sister, Marijeanne.

Then you closed your office door,
Presumably, knowing little telecomm,
And emerged a few months later,
Loaded for bear and then some.

And with Scott and a faith determined,
Paying no mind to skeptical engineers,
Found horsepower where there were no horses
LCX, Phase 2, kept us alive a few more years.

You know, I’ve heard no one’s indispensable,
And I believe that it’s always true,
Except in this case, Gary.
NACT wouldn’t even be, without you!

With focused fingers flying
Over a keyboard hard pressed to keep up,
And documentation skills honed at Nellis,
You explained, for all of us, dial-ups.

Oh… I admire your skill set, Gary,
And the brilliant mind, it’s source.
Your analytical prowess astounds me.
You’ve worked hard for it, of course.

Taking classes at night,
Keeping abreast of our industry,
When you might rest on your laurels,
You invest in us, the company.

We’re lucky to have you,
And all of us know it.
Hope there aren’t more bluffs to call,
No more reasons to quit.

Did they know you were from Vegas,
Those gamblers down South?
They should have known you mean
What comes out of your mouth!

***

Yes… I envy it all
In a good way, of course,
But what I admire most is...
You have little remorse.

With no reason to have it
And nothing to hide,
You live life on the level,
No ghosts deep inside.

Up front and honest,
Candidly cool,
What the world sees,
Is the real you.

No reason to remember
Lies you’ve not told.
Your virtue’s intact,
You’ve free reign to be bold.

Like a prophet of old
With a courage defined,
A lifetime to learn
And a laugh to refine. ............

Did I include “reverence”
With “fancy free breeze”?
It’s more majestic and piercing…
Can bring men to their knees.

You should take comfort in knowing
That a century and more ago,
Around some cowboy campfire
With deep coals all aglow,

Are a few great, great grandfathers,
Proud, happy and pleased,
That posterity has preserved
Their long laugh, so at ease.

***

I’m honored to have shared this 20 year journey with you Gary, and I look forward to another 15 or 20 years on your team. Maybe by then, I’ll know what a dial-up is. :)


Dedicated to Duane Brown

Isaiah (A Chorus Song)

A Dream, Not a Poem

My Dream of Earl Jack, 23May05, Dan Iroz

Let me preface relating my dream with this: Before going to sleep last night, my dear wife Kita informed me that she had finished the preparations for Earl to have his temple work done. In fact, all that remained was to obtain the blue card for his endowment from the temple. I’d also just watched (twice) a science fiction video called “Primer”, a Sundance award winning entry that delved into the leading edge physics of time-travel, and in which a cell phone played a part in the plot. I loved it. So here’s my dream:

I was attending a conference with Brett Parkinson and the speaker was talking about a leading edge cell phone identification standard or something.

He left early and afterwards I found myself in a room where who in the world walks in but Earl Jack, my deceased friend and NACT employee. The dream became so vivid and I was very surprised and became very emotional. We hugged and I commented about his characteristic Navaho reserved demeanor, not meeting my eyes much (interesting, because with me, Earl wasn’t a typical Navaho like that, and met my eyes most of the time) and using his words sparingly.

I was so glad to see him. But no sooner than we were reunited, he was leaving and I was following swiftly behind. He stopped before rounding a corner and jotted down a note, which he then brought back to me.

The penmanship was bad and the grammar was lacking. And, it was in two different colors: one written approximately over the top of the other one. It wasn’t long and I don’t remember the very few first words nor the last, but the bulk of the message was this: “holy water, 100%, help Tauntos (sp)” I looked up and Earl was gone, and a young girl was almost to the corner he had turned back from.

I was overcome and walked into what seemed to be a staircase where I talked with a man who I seemed to know, a fatherly figure willing to listen to me as I told him that I’d just been visited by my friend who had died. Before I could tell him however, he assured me that he’d been blessed with some very profound experiences himself, including angels calling him on his telephone.

I immediately awoke and spent a few minutes remembering my dream, before relating it to my wife Kita.

I remembered to write it down at 1:00pm, here at work.

Greg Brown Guitar Tabs

Greg Brown Guitar Tabs

Eternal Views

Eternal Views
-Dan Iroz, 23Sep03, vA0

Jealousy...you stranger
How was I to know you'd linger
Didn't know you'd even get here
I'm tired now..best go..I fear

How's a man to know such things
Before they're felt, before they bring
Such wonderous ache and mystery
Before they check his sanity

If goblins scare and live neath bridges
No, trolls I mean, who show but smidges
Of things they know but can't reveal
For fear of losing their precious meal

Think what ache jealousy derives
From princes lost...just kept alive
With tiny portions...barely to keep
Hearts from breaking, but fees to reap

And time, oh what a villian
To mask itself, while only stealing
Faith by measure...slow but sure
A glass half full, half emptier

Take heart my heart...faith be restored
Live worthy of her love and more
She'll come around, you watch and see
Lessons learned..she'll learn from thee

And by and by if truth be told
She'll grow to trust it from you bold
Your only ace, His sacred power
Growing stronger hour by hour

And don't forget the more for you
To learn from her when worthy too
Her talents many will add to yours
If you but hear when listening for

Her still soft heartbeats hidden deep
Beneath exterior so complete
That only focus and so much more
Will hear those truths she has in store

For your best...it's surely so
Don't hesitate or argue more
If listening first's all you can do
Hearing will come, a heavenly view

And both shall see well worth the struggle
No diamonds, art, or ought to smuggle
What treasure there awaits for them
Eternal views begin and when

Covenants are kept and spirits fed
Two souls as one and truly wed
One day will see and will behold
Worlds without number as He has told

Yes...all He hath, it shall be theirs
Family and friends in white and pairs
Never to leave or go out again
But to cleave as one with Him

A grander prize was never known
Eternal lives to call their own
Help bring to pass His work and glory
Sharing in it all, no greater story

Celestial Treat, Dan Iroz, 11Mar05, vA1