January 25th

“Then looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, "Ephphatha," that is, "Be opened." Mark 7:34

you look up—
past the tear-stained sky
pressing down on Minnesota,
past the winter storm which silences
highways and seals houses shut.
you sigh—
your breath heavy as the snow,
at shelters overflowing,
at empty shelves in groceries,
at feet frozen by witnessing.
you speak—
‘open up’
to ears plugged by narcissism,
to mouths frozen by rhetoric,
to hearts slammed shut against
the cold of the suffering of others.
‘open up’
to those covered by ice,
to all counted as the least,
or not even in the running.
‘open up’
those policies hardened by fear,
compassion rationed out by the teaspoon,
mercy which has been packed away.
and the Spirit leans into
the bitter winter winds of hate,
refusing to give up carrying the word
into sanctuaries and onto sidewalks,
into narrow alleyways and corridors of power,
until all that is closed—
slowly, too slowly perhaps—
to thaw
let us hear
let us speak
let us persist
always opening our lives
to the most vulnerable
especially while the storm rages.

© 2026 Thom M. Shuman

Venmo: @Thom-Shuman