Posts for June 23, 2020 (page 4)

For Me

Dearest LORD
Nothing is as deep as You
All of our knowledge, all of our power, all of our wisdom
All is surface
But you
You are my depth
My life, my soul
You are my heart, you see in me
And you see through me
Past my hurt, past my anger
Past that veil that keeps me from you at times
And that You tore for me that I am,
That I may know You always.

You rent those curtains
With all the might God gave You
You smote the demons – though it wasn’t You,
But in Your submission.
It was You Yourself Father
You rent the curtains
With all the strength You could muster and beyond
And they fall like lumps of clay
Or brittle twigs snapping in a breeze
Your meekness and submission did it
Your sensitivity, Your love did it…
For me…
For us….

issues
like stained rags with holes
you can’t throw away
everyone has at least one    

Fungus
Dead Man fingers creep
out of forests’ rotten woods
like a man’s digits

let’s re-write the bulletin so all are welcome;
let’s open up past orders
of worship  

we’ve come to the time of service
where decency commands change  

because i picture faces, spaces,
particular places of racism, in stores, on the street.
privilege presents itself in seeing racism in scenes,
not understanding it is the scenery  

my friend prays in a sanctuary of trees,
sings with a choir of song birds,
calls a familiar hello to chattering chipmunks,
feels seen in lush, breathing growth  

a place that is holy to us is often a locus
of stares and distrust for Black friends.
i can only imagine the challenge of seeking God’s peace
under the eye that would call you loiterer
before seeing you as fellow pilgrim.  

racism is setting-turned-character of the american story.
examine complicity—yes, whites have benefitted, even unintentionally.
it’s beyond time for intentional change, for futures to be re-written
before they repeat the past.  

our service must let live,
let flourish the holiness of others.

I tried so hard to be a girl,
Who didn’t burn the letters
Who didn’t smash the glass
Who learned to love better
Who behaved herself with class

Who clutched machine pressed coins
Who clutched an outstreched hand
Who clung to soft gold memories
Who fanned orange dying embers.

I burned into a woman fast,
Who grew tired of pretty burdens
Who grew quick to cut the fat
Who forced her nerves to deaden
Who required no eclat

Who boiled over, burning steam
Who boiled bones upon a stove
Who tore open life at the seam
Who lived a wild tale she wove.

Well, 
I ‘put my dog down.’
I ‘put him to sleep.’
I ‘put him out of his misery.’
I ‘showed him mercy.’
I ‘did the right thing.’

He was 17 and suffering. 

But I just can’t get past the fact that
I killed my dog.  

I don’t think I ever will. 

When did glass half full
turn into glass almost gone
for this optimist?

Mr. Stripey
Morgage Lifter
Cherokee Purple
a sharp knife
mayonnaise
thick   sliced   bread
toasted
kosher salt
red leaf
butter leaf
romaine
bacon grease spitting all over the kitchen
howling dog outside—smells
something—
hears the sizzle
scratches on the back door screen
you catch the toast as it pops up
baconlettucetomato

Need I say more?

Under a crescent moon, a woman and her young daughter
spin in gowns studded with stars. The mother combs dreams

from her hair. They break into blooms of green, orange, maroon.
Her long locks ripple out from her scalp—a golden flag, a wave

of light against inky air. Beneath their feet, a carpet of fallen stars
illume their way. A green-faced crone, skin scaly as a crocodile,

wags a crooked, bony finger, invites them closer. The mother soothes
her child’s cheek, chants a litany of constellations to dissolve evil

spells. Her lilting syllables shimmer a shield around them.

These days what changes
                        is weather,
clouds weighed
            like palmed marbles,
looking for an aggie
            to set the motion.
Eyes cast up
            will well and brim,
will open wider
            still the roil
of tossing green
            here in the storm
we unfurl
            like the hands of children
reaching for water.