remembrance day love poem to the world

There was a light in the sky

and it grew from a place beyond redemption. There was a light in the sky and it shone from a place beyond guilt. There was a light in the sky and it had no understanding of forgiveness. There was nothing to forgive.

There is nothing to forgive.

In the middle of a field we can meet. We’ll see each other coming from a long way off—and recognize the stranger coming towards us. We’ll see the hair, the skin tone, the style of dress. We’ll notice how they hold their shoulders, the distance between their arms and their torso, and the tread of their walk. We’ll see how they look around, scanning their surroundings—squinting between the shadows. And we’ll put them in a box.

And they’ll see us.

They’ll see me. They’ll see you. They’ll notice the way we walk, the tilt of our head, and the subtle lift in the corners of our mouths. They’ll pull together the tiniest details into the big picture. And they’ll put us in a box. One that makes sense. One that collects us into a group that’s come before. Four walls to keep us in. Four walls to keep us understandable, familiar, cordoned off from the unexpected. So we—us strangers, you and me—will become something they can define.

In the middle of the field we can meet.

We’ll see each other from a foot or two apart. And in them we’ll recognize ourselves. In them we’ll see the light. We’ll see the stars. We’ll see the source and beauty and love that fills us up. We’ll see beyond the hair, the skin tone, the style of dress. We’ll notice how their hearts beat, the rhythm of their breath, the rise and fall of their chest, and the palms—turned up.

And they’ll see us. They’ll see me. They’ll see you.

They’ll notice how we stand, anchored to the same earth. They’ll see the light in our eyes, the heart in our chest, and our palms—turned up. They’ll squint beyond the shadows and then—in us they’ll see the stars. They’ll see the source and beauty and love that fills us up. We’ll see each other, standing there in the middle of that field beneath the light. It will be like new.

There is nothing to forgive.

There was nothing to forgive.

There is a light in the sky

and it has no understanding of forgiveness. There is a light in the sky and it shines from a place beyond guilt. There is a light in the sky and it grows from a place beyond redemption. There is nothing to forgive.