"The difficulty of literature is not to write, but to write what you mean; not to affect your reader, but to affect him precisely as you wish." ~ Robert Louis Stevenson



Sunday, April 10, 2016

Compassionate

On Sundays we go to church and listen to the service.

Not just the preaching and teaching,
but what we’re asked to do for others—
a meal, a ride, childcare, prayers.

Keep listening and we hear what’s been done—
a yard cleaned up, canned food gathered.

But listen carefully for quiet words in passing
and we overhear the constant living under-rush of service,
not assigned or organized, just given—
a tire changed, a cup of flour lent,
a day brightened, a grief shared.

~ Tamary Shoemaker
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
(From a prompt at Poetic Asides to use an emotion as a title.)

No comments:

Post a Comment