Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Poem: The Color of Hope


The Color of Hope


It is easy to imagine
the darkness within,
when the walls are worn
with peeling white paint,
and the clapboard grey
with weathering,
the steps overgrown
with smothering vines.

It is easy to imagine
how you yourself seem,
battered by time and circumstance,
your hair suddenly graying,
your skin no longer smooth,
only your eyes still bright.

But there is a life and a light
in you, and in this old church
that belie age and time,
that stand strong,
with windows open
to fresh air, fresh love, fresh hope,

and for that soul who ignores
the battered surface
to peer inside,
there is grace, and promise,
and the bright color of hope.

===========

The picture is of Rupert Methodist Church in Rupert, VT, a small but vibrant faith community where I worship from time to time. You can click in it for a larger version.

Tom

4 comments:

Tess Kincaid said...

The eyes are a window to the soul. Beautiful piece, Tom.

Shadow said...

hope is ageless, isn't it. but how i wish the body would keep up, heee heeee heeee

Unknown said...

Hi Tom,

The very opposite of beauty being only skin deep!

Unknown said...

Just lovely. Our eyes do stay bright, don't they?