photo for unsplash by Gilles Detot
Lk. 24:28-29
Stay with us, for it is nearly evening.
Dark approaches,
and though we seem to have our plans in order
so there is no need to fear,
and we ourselves are impressed with the completeness,
we do fear.
Please stay with us.
You know our terror and do not blame us for it,
though its taste and odor lie sour within us.
Stay with us.
Evening rises all around,
and you are light.
Please remain,
for what is evening for
except to fill the emptiness of day with friendship
and fruits that escaped us through the noon.
Stay with us
that we may hold one evening longer
this joy that grows from being with you.
Stay with us, please;
the substance of our meal
cannot nourish us without you.
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Thank you for this beautiful and gripping poem. There is something evocative about evening time and its “in-between-ness” and you capture it well. I was recently waiting for a lab test to come back and tell me if I had cancer or not. Luckily, this time, it was ‘not.’ This metaphor of evening fits that time of waiting. No matter how hard we work to feel complete, we still fear. Only the Great Presence can hold us. Thank you, Sally.
Dear Ruth,
Thank you for this response. I am touched to know this poem has spoken about the holiness of waiting. Blessings, especially for your health.
Peace,
Sally