Zach Uram's Blog

  • new poem

    “Eat”

    food is sublime
    an ode in rhyme

    whether it is pasta
    or pizza pie

    I love eating
    sometimes French or Thai

    give me bagels with cream cheese
    or a strawberry cake

    my senses are delighted
    I am ready to partake

    ramen noodles I like
    and hamburgers too

    I want some cheese fries
    and beef roast au jus

    there are so many cuisines
    I never grow weary

    I’ll eat it all
    and my stomach stays cheery

    so bring on your cupcakes
    and your tacos as well

    a nice roasted turkey
    sure is swell

    I’ll have some pumpkin pie
    and moo shoo pork ad lib

    spaghetti with meatballs is nice
    also I’ll have some prime rib

    here ends my tale
    I think I’ll eat some quail

    (c) Zachary Uram, 2016

  • New poem

    “Violet”

    My sister Vi is so sweet and kind
    I can always talk to her
    If there’s something on my mind

    When I am sick and unwell
    She nurses me
    Until I feel swell

    We can chat about poetry
    Films and 80s songs
    Our banter is always lively

    She is a poet and an artist too
    So talented
    Her focus is true

    Vi is my best friend
    And my roommate as well
    Eclectic we tend

    We always communicate
    Whether by text, phone, email or in person
    Our discourse will never stagnate

    Vi and I share faith in our Savior
    Jesus Christ the Lord
    We shall be with Him in eternal favor

    (c) 2016, Zachary Uram

  • new poem

    “afternoon musings”

    Water gushes across the window pane
    Oh what a torrential rain

    The cool Spring air
    So refreshing and fair

    The fierce wind gusts and blows
    Following a path only God knows

    I thought of the rain which fell
    After Christ’s death knell

    His precious blood washed away down the hill
    All in accordance with the Father’s will

    (c) 2016 Zachary Uram

  • New poem

    “Election”

    Oh sweet joy I’ve come to know
    Because of His unmerited grace
    Eternity with the Lord I will face

    Christ paid the ransom for my soul
    I’m free from death and sin
    Oh what a great propitiation

    We are all blackened by sin
    But we need not remain in darkness
    God has given us the Lamb glorious

    You can’t earn salvation
    No it must be a result of grace
    We’re no longer lost in disgrace

    This wondrous Election is so sublime
    From the world’s foundation we were chosen
    The regenerated souls and the damned frozen

    If you are lost
    And hurt and bruised and lame
    Then repent and call upon His Name

    Now praise the Redeemer
    Let the trumpets sound and angelic host sings
    Our Lord Jesus Christ, the King of Kings

    (c) 2016 Zachary Uram

  • new poem

    “an autumn day”

    a cold breeze passes
    leaving goosebumps

    i exhale
    and my breath is visible

    walking in the park
    leaves satisfyingly crunch under foot

    i take a sip
    of my pumpkin spice latte

    it is refreshing
    i behold the trees

    the many hued leaves
    create a rich tapestry of color

    i arrive home in time for lunch
    french onion soup

    i smell the sweet carmelized onions
    it is topped with melted cheese

    a pleasing meal
    nourishing and earthy

    i sit by the window
    reading a book

    soon it is evening
    i wear a comfy sweater

    i drift asleep
    dreaming of a Thanksgiving feast

    by Zachary Uram, (c) 2015

  • A Poem Untitled

    photographs are interesting
    yet also strange

    capturing a real life,
    in motion

    a moment immortalized,
    frozen in time

    what stories would we hear
    if they could speak

    information lost
    so much is unsaid

    we do not perceive all
    hidden forever

    but we do see dimly
    just a glimpse

    (c) Zachary Uram 2015

  • Jarvis and Bach

    Australian author Martin Jarvis starts with an astounding assertion, that Bach’s second wife Anna Magdalena Bach wrote not only the Solo Cello Suites, but other major works attributed to Bach as well.  He expects us to go along with him with basically no real evidence. The much ballyhooed handwriting analysis is a joke, and it has been debunked by real Bach experts. And make no mistake about it Jarvis is decidedly not a Bach expert. For a thoroughly devastating critique of Jarvis and his absurd thesis please read this article written by eminent Bach scholar Ruth Tatlow. It’s a wonderful rejoinder! Even if every single Bach work we have extant was written in Anna’s hand it doesn’t mean anything more than she was an efficient and trusted copiest. To read between the lines and presuppose this ink being in Anna’s hand somehow proves her authorship is truly absurd and defies logic!

    Jarvis has produced a documentary and a book to document his wild theories. I’d watch the documentary if it were available for free on YouTube, but I certainly won’t be contributing any money to a person who is trying to make a name for himself with shoddy scholarship and sensationalistic claims about the greatest composer in history! The same for his book.

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  • depression redux

    lost in a dark abyss
    mired in an unceasing melancholy
    my soul aches
    a cold darkness engulfs me
    it chills me to the bone
    waves of dread wash over me
    i cry out in despair
    my mind is numb
    yet at my worst He is still present
    Christ’s love reaches me
    even in my lowly wretched state
    how amazing and wonderful
    thank you Lord!
    i will keep running the race

    (c) By Zachary Uram, 2015

  • rant

    The black leadership in America is abysmal, it has desperately failed the black community. All I see is victimization and race baiting, it’s all politics to them. Blacks keep voting for Democrats and nothing changes. If you elected strong, intelligent, conservative black men like Allen West you would see changes in the black community IMHO. And you need better leaders than the likes of Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson! Another thing, my family are immigrants (legal ones), and had absolutely nothing to do with slavery so I’m tired of being blamed for past injustices.

  • How shall we worship

    Within the Christian church there are two basic forms of worship: the regulative principle of worship (RPW) and the normative principle of worship (NPW). Basically the regulative principle allows only that which is explicitly mentioned in Scripture. And the normative principle allows anything which isn’t explicitly forbidden by Scripture. In many RPW churches you will find exclusive psalmody (EP). With exclusive pslamody the Psalms contained in Scripture are the sole form of music permitted in worship. They are sung by the congregation and no musical accompaniment is permitted.

    I favor the normative principle, it gives us the freedom to praise God using all of our talents and utilizing the best hymns and sacred music of the past. I find the regulative principle to be overly restrictive and not supported by Scripture. We have examples of people praising God using instruments in Scripture. I cannot imagine that when we perform Bach’s sacred cantatas we are somehow sinning against God and that the music is not true worship! There is lots of legalistic thinking in proponents of EP so be careful if you run into them.

    Here is a good article which discusses these issues.