John R. plays the offertory

short straight black hair

like winter night

serious eyes  

delicate violin held in

muscular hands

bow begins to stroke strings

liquid honey

pouring out into bright church  

it’s O Holy Night and we listen

to too familiar melody

anticipating

every

interval  

but then he flips

up an octave

song transformed

poised                  hovering

above us like an angel

with outstretched wings

transfixing hearts

bathed in the beauty of

holy night pure love

Newtown - day after

today is limed with white crystals

each bare branch and twig frosted with flakes of ice 

yesterday was bullets smashing innocence

Newtown the epicenter of evil quake 

today is numb with heaviness

frozen hearts encased 

yesterday was raw with rage

little lifeless hearts lost 

I look out at the beauty and don’t see it

yesterday’s fog obscuring

november sunrise

round white world’s edge lit

by half disc of frozen flame

monday miracle

psalm VI

gust sends snakes of snow

drifting off roof

wafting across front yard

like string quartet playing scherzo 

I watch through triple pane R-3 windows

winter taking hold

on bare branches

and iced roads

and reaching through the defenceless glass

and grabbing me by the throat

telling me to

stop singing

stop revelling

stop living  

but I won’t          I              won’t

even

though

the cold

invades

from                      every

angle  

I will sing on