- José Bernal, Drought in Paradise, 1974. Image via Wikipedia
We’re still visiting churches in our town of Kerrville. And I still take my quirky little poetry notes. I think this poem came from a homily by Eric Rhoda at First Presbyterian. If I were more patient, this is another one I would have submitted to Image Journal or someplace similar.
Instead, I’m submitting it to HighCallingBlogs.com weekly Random Acts of Poetry.
And please, God, send some rain to Texas!
The Garden in Drought
Annuals explode orange and yellow
petals, springing up out of mass-
packaged manure compost and mulch,
watered, loved, weeded, and eaten
one night by scrawny white-tailed
yard rats. So we content ourselves
with less flashy flora. Plant bitter
herbs, pungent rosemary, sweet
basil. Small doses grow slow, but
the earth’s best beauty endures
even when subtle tastes are lost
on calloused tongues. Stark life
is life unadorned, and passion
doesn’t shout amen or raise hands.
We’re not lukewarm. We’re salt. Our faith
is breath and heartbeat. Our cups
run over, but they’re still just cups.
Image by José Bernal, Drought in Paradise, 1974. Used with permission of his son.
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a wonderful bunch of words that brings smiles along with bittersweet truth.
I loved this: “…the earth’s best beauty endures
even when subtle tastes are lost
on calloused tongues.”
We have some of those white-tailed yard rats too.
nancy, I’m glad the words made you smile. I can hope for nothing less.
laura, we call our local herd of deer “yard rats” but we mean it affectionately. Most of the time.
Marcus I read this twice and then a thought came to me so I read it again.
A few points stand out:
1. What nourishes is not necessarily appealing to the eye.
2. watered, loved, weeded and eaten… Could that not perhaps be a spiritual cycle of sanctification in Christ? Love would merely be the constant not one variable.
3. Passion can be quiet.
Thank you for the lessons. There are still many more to be learned here.
I always enjoy reading “garden” poetry. Kowing that you write during worship services makes me smile and I wonder how much of the words come from what the pastor speaks and how much comes from your total experience in that moment (perhaps there is no difference). I liked the picture this brought to mind:
“Our faith
is breath and heartbeat.”
Amen to your prayer for rain in Texas – our cows are losing weight and our tanks are going dry!
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