joyful!
"Make A joyful! Noise..."
The Forest Blessing
by
Cindy Champiney
Raindrops fell softly from a darkened sky,
Tall evergreens with outstretched limbs
Were my umbrella as I bowed my head to cry.
The morning doves sang their woeful song,
From somewhere off in the distance
As if to say they knew what was wrong.
With suddenness the wind began to blow,
Sending the message throughout the forest
As if to summon the blanket of sadness to go.
The rain mysteriously stopped falling,
A glimmer of light broke through the leaves
With outstretched arms it was the sun who’d come calling.
The breeze dried my tears with a gentle caress,
And lifted the sadness from my heart
Feeling the warmth of God’s love, I felt blessed.
Not Afraid
by
Ajay Vishwanathan
I always wanted to be Mother Noopur
Not because she walked around with
Magic in her eyes, warmth in her fingertips,
Not because people spoke with her
Just to see her smile
But because she hugged
Diya, Chanchal,
Mohan,
And everyone cursed by God.
They were lepers to the world,
Diseased for a reason they said
That lay in their deeds from past lives.
Mother saw them as lives
In need of grace as she
Held their calloused hands,
Kissed on their numb cheeks,
Wiped tears off their disfigured faces
And whispered love in their dying ears.
They claimed she was brave because
She was immune to the dreaded bacterium
I think she was brave because
She dared to take on the
Healthy
Insensate
Who were afraid to
Hug a leper.
EDEN
by
Cheryl Williams
In this place, I find my Eden.
Like the whisper of butterfly wings
I move softly,
afraid my presence might
disturb that which is holy;
I kneel on mossy ground
as sunlight washes over me;
I inhale the earth...
sweet musk, aged wood,
fresh cleansing rain.
The meadowlark and whippoorwill
make melody
with a gently rushing stream.
What is it about this place
that makes the rest of the world disappear?
Nothing else matters here.
I can just be.
I can feel God surrounding me,
flowing through me,
washing over me
with all that is good.
I never want to leave.
This is my Eden.
