Wood of the Cross

"It is not the finest wood that feeds the fire of Divine love, but the wood of the Cross." St. Ignatius of Loyola

The Hammer

A Babe was born one silent night
To bring to earth a shining light
O Wisdom! Truth! A young boy grew
To bring to all life anew

And yet throughout this Child's years
A hammer echoed in his ears

He cured the sick and healed the lame
Forgave our sins, took on our shame
Light pierced darkness, brave and true
Grace upon grace for me and for you

But still throughout our Savior's years
A hammer echoed in his ears

A judas kiss, a King betrayed
Upon the cross the Lamb was laid
The hammer fell again and again
For human hearts are full of sin

And a mother's eyes streamed with tears
As the hammer echoed in her ears

O Heart so sorrowful, I tell you true

...this hammer echoes in my ears too.

Forever

The Babe beheld his mother's eyes
As tenderly she soothed his cries
Filled with love and motherly joy
Mary caressed her baby boy

Throughout his life these eyes of grace
Followed Him from place to place
Until one day they mournfully
Followed Him to Calvary

Pierced by sorrow, stung by grief
She crawled beneath the witness tree
The Lord gazed down, beheld his mother
 As one last time they looked at each other

Her eyes spoke forever, a love so profound
They rained their sorrow upon the ground
And those beautiful eyes first seen at his birth
Were the last eyes He saw as He left the earth

Embracing the Truth

"To most, even good people, God is a belief. To the saints, he is an embrace."
                                     
                            Francis Thompson

Two Hearts

The Woman raised eyes sorrowful
Bedimmed with grief and loss
Suffering she spoke not a word
But leaned upon the cross
In agony, her tears flowed down
A soldier pierced His side
Thorns crowned her baby's head
Her Life , her Joy, her Pride
Upon this scene I entered
Espied entwined two Hearts
Naked he came from her womb
...and naked he departs

The Beautiful Gate

The Cross beckoned
"Come to Me, all who are sorrowful and suffering."
I crawled beneath, gazed at Thy Holy Face
battered and bruised, tangled blood-clotted waves
of Thy hair streaming in the bitter wind.
I peered into eyes filled with love and pain.
Bloody tears rained their sorrow upon this proud head.
"Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit."
I kneeled beneath Thy pierced side
Blood and water poured down on me
I drowned in a sea of mercy.
The veil in the Temple split in two.
And I, crippled
Entered the gate
called....
The Beautiful

St. Therese

O Little Flower
Even now I hear the ringing of
bells and angelic applause
which greeted your arrival at
the narrow gate. In your little way,
you slipped right through the eye
of the needle with a childlike grace.
Plucked from the world in the
tenderness of your youth, a
flower in full bloom, petals
raised to the Son, the odor
of your sanctity reaches us still.
A shower of roses....a heavenly bouquet.
We ask for your intercession and help.
May we learn from you, Saint Therese,
that little acts done with great love are
more pleasing to the Father than great
acts done with little love.
Pray for us...that when we pass into
eternity, we, too, may slip easily
through the narrow gate.   Amen

                          Mary N.    2009

The Corner of My Eye

From the corner of my eye
Nailed to a tree
I caught a glimpse
Of Your plans for me
O Author of Life
Creator Divine
The Great I Am
O Love Sublime
You stooped down low
And infused in me
By the merest touch...
     Eternity

A Morning Offering

O Jesus, in union with Your Most Precious Blood
poured out on the Cross and offered in every Mass,
I offer You, today, my prayers, works, joys, sorrows
and sufferings, for the praise of Your Holy Name
and all the desires of Your Most Sacred Heart;
in reparation for sin, the conversion of sinners,
the union of all Christians and our final union
with You in heaven.  Amen

A Foot for Sorrow

On the endless road - Redemption way
I thought I heard my Savior say
"For love alone, one step more.
You can do it, I love you. One step more."
A foot for sorrow, a measure of pain
I lifted my feet, again and again
And the Lamb's voice echoed as before:
"You can do it. I love you. One step more.
Though you may stumble, when you fall down,
I'll lift you up; my graces abound."
In my heart arose a love so sweet
Grace set me once more upon my feet
His beloved voice shook me right to the core:
"You can do it . I love you. One step more!"

Saintly Advice

"We should say each morning: " My God, send me thy Holy Spirit to teach me what I am and what Thou art!"                          St. John Vianney

The sign of the Cross

O Most Beautiful Gate
O Heart Divine
Upon Thy Portal
Is nailed a sign
All who would enter
Whom the Father shall see
All who would enter
Must enter through Me

Walk the walk

Some call this world a burden
Some call this world a curse
But I call it a blessed place
For trust me - there's far worse

I'll walk this earth any day
No matter what the cost
I'll pray each and every day
That not one soul be lost

I'll walk the path of Jesus
With help, I'll walk it well
For His way leads to heaven
The wide road leads to hell

So if you see me walking
With grace, I will not tarry
For Jesus is my light and guard
My cross He helps me carry

And if I see you on this path
Which every day grows steeper
I'll help you if you fall, my friend
....I am my brother's keeper

Saintly wisdom

"Humility and charity are the master chords, all others depend on them. The one is the lowest, the other the highest. The preservation of the entire edifice depends on the foundation and the roof. If the heart keeps itself directed in the exercise of these, no difficulty will be encountered in the others. These are the mothers of virtue, the others follow them as the chicks do their mother."                  St. Padre Pio

The Fruit Of Her Womb

Hail! Full of Grace
Heavenly Rose
From thy Fiat
Salvation arose

Unto thy womb
The Spirit flew
And sowed the seed
Of life anew

O Beautiful Dove
Star of the Sea
In the cradle of thy womb
Dwelt Divinity

Flower of Carmel
Enfolded in thee
The Word made Flesh
Nestled peacefully

Salvation poured forth
One silent eve
A signal to men
That all might believe

On this holy night
In the fullness of time
"The woman" gave birth
The child...Divine

The universe in her eyes

the grass
cushioned her body
cradled her head
with loving arms
the sky gathered
her in...beckoning
the stars
gleamed in her eyes
windows of a soul
lost in the beauty
of God's Creation

An endless refrain

Tears flow
A gentle rain
A mother's heart
Broken again

Children, come back
Heed my call
Return to my Son
He died for you all

Soften your hearts
Pray! Pray! Pray!
...an endless refrain
Will we listen today?

The Weeping Rose

Hiding behind my fig leaf
Cowering in the shame of Eve
I, too, consumed fruit forbidden
Sweet to the lips; bitter to the soul
And mourned outside Eden's gates
An earthen vessel, Adam's seed
Lost in the dust of time
A rose wilted for lack of the Son
"Where are you?" echoed in my soul

At the faintest, "here i am"
A broken arrow, a crooked bow
Stood before the Mercy Seat
Unbathed, covered with grime
Unrecognizable to all but You
Your eyes pierced through the filth
And saw the swan in the ugly duckling
You tucked my heart into your side
Two hearts beat as one
And in this Divine Chamber
A weeping rose unfurled her first petal

Saintly wisdom

What, I pray you, is dying? Just what is it to put off a garment? For the body is about the soul as a garment; and after laying this aside for a short time by means of death, we shall resume it again with more splendor.
                                                                      St. John Chrysostom

Peace

Just a soft whisper
Let there be peace
Unheard by those thundering
figureheads of society
Who bellow their war chants
Righteous, superior voices
Drowning out choices
Years spent fighting wars
nobody can win
For land that
nobody can own
Just borrowed soil
lent to sons
who die fighting for it

Abba's House

There is a place
For which we long
A house of love
Where all belong

T'were not mentioned
T'would be remiss
In this land of peace
Truth and Justice kiss

The lion and the lamb
Lay side by side
In verdant meadows
Love and joy abide

Home we are called
A name we are given
By the Father's hand
Upon our hearts written

A fountain of life
Where love pours out
There are many mansions
In my Father's house

Scars

Bits and pieces of life
Wrapped in a confusion of scars
Untangled by the brevity of my pen
Set to rest
Black wounds in a bed of white

To fall in love with God is the greatest of all romances;
To seek Him, the greatest adventure;
To find Him, the greatest human achievement.
                           St. Augustine

The seven capital sins- Lust

Wanton, lewd, lascivious satyr
Lies enchained by his master
Disrespect for others is his curse
For lust is love in reverse

Always hungry, never replete
Preys on souls with deceit
The more attempts to fill this hunger
The stronger the hold he lies under

Caught up in his misery
Lust screams out his agony:
"The cure for this is too hard for me,
  for the cure for this is purity!"

The seven capital sins-Sloth

Long of face, his spirit weak
His brother's name is Apathy
Sullenly lifts his weary eyes
Slowly emits disheartened sighs:

"This is all too much for me
  too much effort it takes to speak.
The truth is hard to find you see,
  just leave me be...leave me be."

The seven capital sins- Anger

Cold, hard, eyes
Mouth drawn thin
Shakes his fist
At the slightest whim
Filled with rage
His heart too small
Chokes on ire:
"What's wrong with you all!"

The seven capital sins- Envy

He slithers around
Eyes of green
A writhing wraith
Petty and mean

With his lot is discontent
Tearing down is his bent

Of empathy, he is devoid
The fall of others gives him joy:
"Look at him! Can't you see?!
He's dumb, fat, and cowardly.
The gifts he has should be for me.
I deserve these more than he!"

The seven capital sins- Pride

Pride stands tall
His shoulders wide
Carries his ego
Clutched to his side
Yet the merest slight
Will pierce his hide

Head thrown back
He howls in pain
"What gall! I'm king!
Are you all insane?!!"

Saintly Advice

"Walk the way of the Lord in simplicity. Do not torment your spirit. Say the truth, always the truth."
                                                                                       St. Padre Pio

The seven capital sins- Greed

Beady-eyed and hard to miss
Also known as avarice
Hoards his stash
And shivers with glee
"There's none for you!
Tis all for me!"

The seven capital sins- Gluttony

Round of face
Wide of seat
He bellows out
"Let's eat! Let's eat!"
And when he's done
Rolls on the floor
"Tis not enough,
please bring me more!"

Father

You Are
A bottomless well
Infinite
I plumb your depths
Forever
Great the sea of Thy
Mercy
Awash in waves of Thy
Spirit
My tears mingling
Father
With the rain of Thy
Justice
No beginning, no ending
           i
Am humbled by Your
Greatness

The grace of today

Tripping down the path of time
I stumbled onto yesterday's graveyard
Buried broken dreams in her scarred belly
Watered her ancient soil with my sorrow
Forgetting today in my haste
I tumbled forward into tomorrow

A thread of light

Blankets of soft memories
Float around my head
Settling where they will
Cushioning those old hurts
Lying on their concrete bed of mourning
I lift my hand to catch one
But it passes through my fingers
A thread of light
Weaving a promise in the shadows

Shadow Girl- in memory of Diane C.

the gates of never-never land
you entered a broken reed
fallow the field of your youth
no seed of love sown therein
like a deck of cards
shuffled from house to house
where many skeletons lived
in dark cellar closets hidden
home a word you never knew
a tiny dancer lost in shadows
don't snap my wings you cried
i cried
if you hug me i will break
shattered you were, in pieces
too many cracks had weakened
the whole and you leaked throughout
a broken ship listing skyward
a fragile bird, prey for hawks
and other scavengers of the night
look both ways before you cross
too young i could not lead
with a shuttered heart
you could not follow

Humility

" Humility is the garment of God. The incarnate Word was clothed in it, and through it, conversed with us in our bodies, covering the radiance of his greatness and his glory by this humility, lest the creature be scorched by the sight of him. The creature could not have looked at him, had he not taken on some part of it and so conversed with it. Therefore every man who clothes himself in garments of humility becomes clothed in Christ himself...."                                St. Isaak of Syria

An angels ear

Three in a palm
Not in a fist
I blow softly
Making a wish
Childhood dreams
Rest here
Searching for
An angels ear

Run!

Run! Run! Quickly little one!
Like bees, they swarm over you
Ugly words from ugly little mouths
Cover your ears and run away!
If you are very lucky
You'll never be one of them
Breeders of ignorance
Cannot catch what they cannot see.

Fly Away

When she was a little girl
She believed in Santa
Yes she did
'cause she sat on his lap
And fed him cookies and innocence
And she could fly
Yes she could
With cardboard wings and magic dust
She danced in the forest with the pixies
And sailed the seas with Puff

I remember you, little one
You bounced on marshmallow and popcorn skies
But time has flown, little girl dreams float away
I now stand on the bricks of reality
Feet firmly planted in the shoes of adulthood
But sometimes, just sometimes
        I close my eyes
           Squeeze them shut
                Put on my cardboard wings
                     And fly away.

Ebb Tide

They debark in waves
You surf on your bed of deceit
You ride quickly to your goal
Leaving nothing in your wake
But streams of lies
And puddles of despair
With cunning,
You lie in wait
For the next break

Crossroads

Across the desert of my years
Lies a path well tread by Thee
In the midst of life's bitter tears
I looked up and spied a tree
Upon this Tree of Life was nailed
True man, true God, Divinity
I ran , I hid, but truth prevailed
A molded cross You laid on me
I stumbled, fell, again and again
You slowed your step, patiently
You tenderly reached out your hand
And together we entered...Calvary