Kateri Tekakwitha Statue. Copyright© 2015 Saint John’s University Archives.
The women have surprised me.
I keep running into them around campus,
figures of stone, wood, and bronze
sweeping their dresses through this land full of
Our Fathers, poured concrete
blocks of monument.
I love the monks with their welcome
gliding quietly in their robes,
deft hands placing prayer books as
Brother John’s eyes twinkle like
Holy irreverent Santa Claus in Chacos.
The deep monotone of thrumming voices
reminds me that someone is praying when
I am tired.
The dark lacquered choir stalls hold
my frame, if awkwardly.
Yet is it any wonder that Mary and her sisters
are the ones who have captured our hearts
all these generations,
off in the shadows to the side, tucked
down a path of mosquito-swatting pilgrimage,
no accessible carpark.
The detail of their fabric is textured with care
like the drape of a seamstress,
the caress of a mother running
her fingers along [delicate] arms.
St. Kateri Tekakwitha’s scarred cheek and worn flower,
Stella Marris’ small sad eyes, hair brushed
back, smooth bare toes.
Madonna’s notched brow (nose like my grandmother’s)
holding Jesus-child squarely
in her lap as he learns to speak
—what gentle correction
of diction, manner, (theology?)
does she whisper in his ear as he
shrugs at the tickle of breath—
And she…that sculpture, hands open
as she stands on a small altar
with red plumed bird watching;
she lifts her chin to the
light and twirls.
The women have filled me.
Gentle movements of revelation
and I want to press my lips
to their cold stone feet.
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What a lovely poem, Catherine!
I love the way you engaged my senses throughout the poem, how you compared the fabric of Brother John to those of the Marys… and how you honoured both men and women.
I REALLY loved the descriptions of the monks prayers and where the Marys are placed – “mosquito-swatting pilgrimage, no accessible carpark”.
And oh – how beautifully you’ve described Jesus on his Mommy’s lap… feeling her breath upon his ear….
By the end of the poem, I would like to join you in placing my lips to their cold, stone feet!
Thankyou for this.