October 2022 – Page 2 – A Thread You Follow

The Dance Into

We contain the bread and the wine.
More than symbols,
the grain and the fruit contain us.
Whether we sweat from  
the work of our labor or from
the sweet mingling of our love,
both contain the reality of suffering.
The pressed or shredded elements
of creation make holy the communion
of souls tonight at the altar.
Do not let your heart say, No.
Rather, dance your way into 
the realm of further complexity.

“The days are surely coming, says the Lord…” – Jeremiah 31:31

Creator of all days,
Sender of the morning brilliance,
Our growing out of seeds in darkness
Brings fruit to the edge of underground
Where we wait for the first light.
Make us shine and become ablaze
to burn away all the layers of dross 
meant to keep us in our place.
Amen.

In the Grove

Attempt after attempt fails.
The inbox of my life
once again fills itself
up to the roof where
I have tucked myself away
trying to escape from
a world where unmindful
breathing carrying one apple
in an outstretched hand
exhales with a hiss 
endangering all who simply
seek to gather in the midst
of the grove of fruit trees.

“Love God and Do What You Will” – Augustine

People kill and people die
from various interpretations
of loving God.

Better to breathe a mindful
breath where place and desire
no longer clash against the other.

Difficulties

You cannot explain apple juice
to someone who has not tasted it.

Mountain climbing should not be tried
by someone who never touches stone.

Experience accumulates slowly for those
who fail to rise from endless morning sleep.

It is difficult to tell the story of the color purple
to a field of standing goldenrod.

The Many-Colored Way

I said, "Can't you see that it doesn't
matter to me if you run your sword
through my soul?"

She asked, "Are you so certain
in your monkish response
that pain will no longer matter?"

I answered, "Somewhere there is
no concern between what is right
and what is wrong."

She said, "Those who believe so
practice dancing on graves
in the middle of the night."

I apologized, "My sleep was full
of dark dreams meant only 
for those who cherish pain."

She said, "Try walking down avenues
paved with stones of many colors
each sharper than razor blades."

“…one of them…asked him a question to test him.” Matthew 22:35

Creating Word of the World
where words can be formed into questions,
we come to you on syllables of air -
perhaps seeking answers
lying fallow on frozen fields -
but more in search of interpretations
and explanations leading to more questions
and to more questions.
We ask all this quietly
for subtle guidance
so as not to stir those
who debate the placement 
of letters on the page,
for their rage seeks to control
all that dwells in their midst.
Amen.

One Drop at a Time

I write in the space
that exists
as if the world
will come
crumbling down
upon us;
not from
the dropping
of shells
that obliterate
but from
the drips of rain
falling from leaves
one drop
at a time.

The Play of the Gods

The long grass bends
with a push from the wind
moving without
the cares we tend to carry
when our days are heavy.

Tomorrow there may be
no breeze to mark 
the passing of the sky
over the receiving earth
turning below.

We cannot see
the play of the gods
in the fields before us
even though they have
been dancing forever.

One More Time

How many times must I do unto others 
before what I wish to have done to me
happens before my very eyes?