night shift

Goodnight, my love,
my rising moon.
I wish I did not have
to leave you so soon.

While I sink into sleep,
you greet each of the stars,
You emerge from the east,
and then follow your course.

I long to fly with you,
but live in the light.
So shine on me brightly,
that together we might

listen to the sounds
and savor the sights,
awake and alive,
of these still summer nights.

A chorus of crickets,
a katydid call,
a flick'ring of fireflies,
the song of an owl.

The twinkle of airplanes
interrupting the stars,
the gleam of great planets
like Saturn or Mars.

But the best sight of all
is my moonrise above,
each detail reflecting
the Sun's light and love.

As we wander through darkness,
walking hand in hand,
may our love look like Jesus-
a light in this land.

immortal, invisible, God only wise

A new flute choir arrangement, inspired by Reba Snyder's piano arrangement of the hymn!

Immortal, invisible, God only wise,
in light inaccessible hid from our eyes,
most blessed, most glorious, the Ancient of Days,
almighty, victorious, thy great name we praise.

Unresting, unhasting, and silent as light,
nor wanting, nor wasting, thou rulest in might;
thy justice like mountains high soaring above
thy clouds which are fountains of goodness and love.

Great Father of glory, pure Father of light,
thine angels adore thee, all veiling their sight;
all praise we would render; O help us to see
'tis only the splendor of light hideth thee!

overwhelmed

at first,
i think the rain is fun.
i splash in puddles
and fondly think of the sun.

but soon
i'm in up to my knees.
the rain is pouring,
rising rapidly.

the panic follows,
climbs up to my throat.
desperately i search
for some way out.

the old thought returns-
a knife to my skin.
everything stops,
would it be a sin?

i think it over
underwater.
numb and blue,
maybe i could breathe here.

in my mind, i make a cut
with perfect focus.
dark red droplets form
like tiny roses

along a stem
that will someday turn to scar.
now everything moves slowly,
fear is far-

in some other world
above the water.
why should i go back?
my mind cuts deeper.

it is not pursuit of pain
but of relief-
a calm that comes
from releasing pent-up grief.

but something else pulls,
relentless, at my heart.
it whispers stop,
that's not who you are
anymore.

i swim to the surface
and breathe in fresh air.
i know i'm not hopeless,
i know that you're there.

i put the knife back
where it belongs in the cupboard,
i shake off my numbness
and open my heart to the real world.

i dance in the rain
because i know that you will dance with me.
the song is forever,
so why, tell me why
should i worry?

i look at my leg,
six-year-old scars turning white.
they lost their power over me
when i brought them
into the light.

painting

My heart explodes with colors as we travel hand in hand.

Green, the sprawling field we wander like a whispered prayer.

Yellow, the tiny flowers you place in my curly hair.

Blue, the boundless, cloudless sky that seems to sing above.

Purple, the quiet color of my careful love.

I hand you my heart on a palette, and feel you dip a gentle brush

into pink, the morning sun that rises silent, slow, and fair.

Into peach, the new spring tulips blooming by themselves somewhere.

Into lavender, the lullabies you sing into my ear.

I imagine a fuller painting waiting just beyond my fear.


day 27 prompt: bloom

colibrí

My shame is the ruby-red throat of a hummingbird
who swallows her heart as she zips through the sky.
Hovering in the trees, sparkling emerald-green,
longing for her beats per minute to decline.

If you happen to spot us, listen to the songs
that spring from our throats at dusk and at dawn.
If you can keep up, then please sing along.
We'll choke up our hearts til we believe they belong.


day 26 prompt: unravel

day by day

Today's song is the hymn "Day by Day and with Each Passing Moment." This song feels to me like a hug. It is a Swedish hymn, written by Lina Berg in 1865 after the death of her father. This hymn makes me think of my grandmother, who sings it in Swedish: "Blott en Dag," and reminds me that the Lord's mercies are new each morning, and He is with me each day.




Lyrics:

Day by day and with each passing moment, strength I find to meet my trials here;
trusting in my Father's wise bestowment, I've no cause for worry or for fear.
He whose heart is kind beyond all measure gives unto each day what he deems best-
lovingly, its part of pain and pleasure, mingling toil with peace and rest.

Every day the Lord himself is near me with a special mercy for each hour;
all my cares he fain would bear, and cheer me, he whose name is Counselor and Pow'r.
The protection of his child and treasure is a charge that on himself he laid;
"As your days, your strength shall be in measure," this the pledge to me he made.

Help then in every tribulation so to trust your promises, O Lord,
that I lose not faith's sweet consolation offered me within your hold Word.
Help me, Lord, when toil and trouble meeting, e'er to take, as from a father's hand,
one by one, the days, the moments fleeting, till I reach the promised land.

potential

Can I put you in a poem?
Can I hang you on a wall in my home?
Can I hold you, but not just in my head?
Can I keep you, like a book I've never read?

Keep you, like that book, on my shelf for ages-
so much potential in its pages.
I dare not open it up and find
it's not what I built it up to be in my mind.

No, instead, can I take you off the shelf
and open the book of your beautiful self?
Step into the unknown story inside,
letting go of my pictures, my poems, my pride.


day 18 prompt: protect