Aubade with Hope
Today, I affirm I will not fall
into the brittling arms of another
ambush—I will tame my steps
with the fetters of Jehovah’s grace—
I will wait
.
inside His miracle egg till I hatch
into the eye of a fine reggae. I will
only be vulnerable where the light has
.
a say. If you will find me, ask
the women with lilies in the wet
of their eyes. The body
with all its demands, won’t supply
.
at ease. I will dip two fingers
into the mouth of my weakness,
each
unafraid of its brittling fangs.
.
River, river—
lift up your roaring tongue to heaven,
swear you do not have my mother
in your belly. Show me your recipe, swear
she is not your dinner.
.
Bald gongs, shush your mouth—
where is my honour? Secretive
wind, whose story do you hide in a fist?
.
Adonai, keep me like the sweetest
wine at the wedding in Canaan;
keep me where the blade is
.
kind. Keep me the way you keep
your flock from wolves
in sheep’s clothing. Keep me from
the axe’s tongue, from the tooth
.
of my vulnerabilities—
because the alternative is to die, keep me
like something tangible.