One evening, on a trail above the Chickakoo lakes,
we heard Amazing Grace played on bagpipes,
coming across the wide valley and over the waters.
It was like the scent from water lilies filtering up
through high-bush cranberries, or like the shape of a soul,
if you could see a soul, or like when a door opens
to the light of day, and for a moment you are blinded,
and all you can do is swim in the shine of it.
And as the last note drifted up and away,
I was aware that I was leaning against a poplar tree,
my legs shaky, under the weight of all that love.
And now I am old, like a child tottering through very tall grass.
Its green is beginning to drain and I smell the colours of rust.
The ripening heads are over my head. They sway and shatter.
The grass stings my face in the wind. I receive a light flaying
—a final anointing.
I am alone but unafraid. And unafraid, I’m never alone.
I hunger. I’m a disciple. I eat grain. The grain of life.
I thirst. It rains. I rest.
You can walk or leap. It matters not.
You can sing or scream. It’s all the same.
Your inside is outside and your out is within.
You are poured out everywhere.
Your everywhere is a prayer, your prayer is love.
What’s so amazing about grace … everything!!
Thanks for that, Sam.
” I was aware that I was leaning against a poplar tree,
my legs shaky, under the weight of all that love.”
Stephen, your shining moment resonates deep. Amazing Grace voicing hope in the long lament of bagpipes droning far away. Your words gave me the experience fully formed in my imagination. Thank you.
Thank you so much, Valerie.
I love this so much. A lovely way to end my week.
And thank you so much, Diane. Always lovely to hear from you.
This brought back a memory so I wrote a poem. Thank you, again. 🙂
https://open.substack.com/pub/marcialeelaycock/p/a-light-flaying-of-grass?r=l4rg2&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true
oops just realized that one went behind the paywall. Here’s the poem _
A Light Flaying of Grass*
I step out of the trees
find myself
in tall grass by the river
I step in
slim stalks surround me
tawny heads wave above me
I reach to touch
feel the stiff sting
a soul’s welcoming
the wind a soft sigh
engulfing enticing
I sway
breathe in rhythm
embrace
a portal to now
a glimpse
of heaven to come.
*from On a Trail Above the Chickakoo Lakes – Grow Mercy
So lovely, thank you Marcia!
All you can do is “swim in the shine of it”;
absorbed in the scent of it;
anointed by the scene of it.
Thank you so much, Ike. Always grateful for your response.
Thank you for voicing what I have been feeling and unable to articulate. The gift of a poet.
Thank you, Tiffany, for your such a kind response.