The Hill We Climb …

When day comes we ask ourselves,Where can we find light in this never-ending shade?The loss we carry,a sea we must wadeWe braved the belly of the beastWe’ve learned that quiet isn’t always peaceAnd the norms and notionsof what just isIsn’t always just-ice.And yet the dawn is oursbefore we knew itSomehow we do itSomehow we weathered…

Christmas Poem …

Says a country legend told every year: Go to the barn on Christmas Eve and see what the creatures do as that long night tips over. Down on their knees they will go, the fire of an old memory whistling through their minds! So I went. Wrapped to my eyes against the cold I creaked…

God’s Design …

Walk in faith, believe in God Carry no haversack, no sandals Journey into the tabernacle of the night With no less sureness than if it were day Look to the truth Not as a rushlight But as a flaming torch By which to walk God's way And treasure those moments - Few though they are-…

Keeping Quiet …

Now we will count to twelve and we will all keep still for once on the face of the earth, let's not speak in any language; let's stop for a second, and not move our arms so much. It would be an exotic moment without rush, without engines; we would all be together in a…

Let This Darkness Be a Bell Tower …

Quiet friend who has come so far, feel how your breathing makes more space around you. Let this darkness be a bell tower and you the bell. As you ring, what batters you becomes your strength. Move back and forth into the change. What is it like, such intensity of pain? If the drink is…

Believe in What You Do Not See …

The child whispered, 'God, speak to me' And a meadow lark sang. The child did not hear. So the child yelled, 'God, speak to me!' And the thunder rolled across the sky But the child did not listen. The child looked around and said, 'God let me see you' and a star shone brightly But…

The Guest House …

This being human is a guest house. Every morning a new arrival. A joy, a depression, a meanness, some momentary awareness comes as an unexpected visitor. Welcome and entertain them all! Even if they're a crowd of sorrows, who violently sweep your house empty of its furniture, still, treat each guest honorably. He may be…

Kindness …

Before you know what kindness really is you must lose things, feel the future dissolve in a moment like salt in a weakened broth. What you held in your hand, what you counted and carefully saved, all this must go so you know how desolate the landscape can be between the regions of kindness. How…

Keeping Watch …

In the morning When I began to wake It happened again — That feeling That You, Beloved Had stood over me all night Keeping watch. That feeling That as soon as I began to stir You put Your lips on my forehead And lit a holy lamp Inside my heart. — Hafiz from I Heard God Laughing:…