PRESENCE

“I was stolen by You from the grave.” – Aaron Strumpel
“Freedom is coming, oh yes, I know.” – South African church song

Shuttered windows,
tightly latched doors
cannot prevent dark clouds
from entering
my room
disturbing
my silence and prayers.

Never alone, I seek
my angel-whisperer
to bring my plea
to heaven’s ears,
“Yahweh, lift this shadowed yoke.”

Sharply, an explosive laugh
starting in my belly spews
forth through my lips
with a dangerous language
to remind me,
cowards sleep an easy peace.

EGO SUM NOLI TIMERE
(“It is I, do not be afraid”)

Whose cattle are these
that lowly moan
and feed on tall green grass?
Whose calf that cavorts
with careless
and innocent joy?
Whose geese that swim
the gently flowing river
as an armada?
I do not own them,
but they belong to me
as surely as I to them.
And when I stop
to watch,
and still my breath,
the cattle stop eating,
the calf stands quietly
and the geese stop swimming,
as we slowly bow our heads
to the Holy Presence before each of us.

Ego sum noli timere…