It’s Still Possible

Min Yu (China) “Dreamlike water village”

Darling, you don’t have to believe in God
but please pray
for your own sake
great prayers of thanks
for the mountains, the great rivers
the roundness of the moon
just because they’re here at all
and that you get to know them
and let prayer bubble up in you
as a natural thing
like song in a bird….

and feel some sacred flame
inside of you that yearns toward
learning how to build a bigger
fire of love in your heart…

You don’t have to believe in God
but get quiet enough to remember
we really don’t know a damn thing
about any of it
and if you can, feel a reverence to be part
of This Great Something
whatever you want to call it
that is so much bigger
and so far beyond
the rooftops of all
our knowing

— Chelan Harkin, Susceptible to Light (fragment)