Friday, June 2, 2017

A visit to his house


After Isaiah 6

I went to his house,
my regular visit, not
expecting to see him,
because I’d never
seen him before, but
this time he was there,
a presence filling
the structure with light
and smoke and song
and in my terror at the sight
of him in his house,
a live coal, burning and
red, was placed
upon my lips, sufficient
to allow my presence
in the house filled
with light and smoke
and song.

The live coal was placed
on my lips, burning but not
consuming or damaging,
burning and cleaning,
an act of restoration,
making my lips sufficient
and proper, the authorized reason,
perhaps to tell the people
what they did not want to hear,
words that meant
   to heal blindness
   to cure deafness
   to soften hardness of hearts
   to be healed.

The words to be given
longer than necessary
until the live coal
that healed my lips also
heals the land
heals the hearts.


Photograph by Rajesh Misra via Public Domain Pictures. Used with permission.

No comments: