October 7th

"The voice of the LORD causes the oaks to whirl,

    and strips the forest bare;
and in his temple all say, 'Glory!'”  Psalm 29:9

i have rested in old chairs

worn smooth by so many generations

and listened to their silent

prayers lodged in the memories

of the river stones in the walls,

and whispered, 'glory!'

i have taken my place in

decision-making church bodies

where the same discussion

keeps being tabled until

the very next meeting, and

muttered under my breath,

'good grief.'

i have sat on carpet squares

as little kids gathered around

to listen to a book being read

while their attention and hands

were distracted by the golden

retriever curled up on the floor

and sang to myself, 'thank you!'

  

(c) 2024 Thom M. Shuman

Venmo: @Thom-Shuman