A Positively Poetic Priest

In the Gospel passage from Matthew this morning, we get to hear one of the most significant moments of the entire Bible, and it gets 10 words. "She had borne a son; and he named him Jesus." Sadly anti-climatic. For anyone who has had a child, you know it takes more than 10 words more than 10 seconds. More than 10 hours, 10 months, or even 10 years of your life. Giving birth is not for the faint of heart. Birth, new life is such a strong part of our Advent season an overarching theme of the whole beginning of the church year. We are waiting with Mary for the birth of Jesus. Which in our world today would mean packing the go-bag to take to the hospital preparing the last minute items in the nursery long hours waiting in the doctor's waiting room moments of panic and hours of boredom deep breathing and muscular pain and pushing And then the last gush of pain, heat, blood,  and the miracle of new life a baby. We don...

Every repetition strengthening the muscles Pulling, pushing, stretching, contracting Creating a haze of strain and struggling The angel that was midwife to my birth From me to recreated me heard those screams  From pain-filled dying to new life crying The world in its one language calling out Every lesson in years of school merely practice For the life time string of pearly lessons waiting I raise the blinds each morning to observe again Each observation changing hopefully acknowledged  A pointy thorn into a marvelous rose blooming