Sacred Vision

Sacred Vision

—inspired by  Emily Dickinson’s “Joy to have merited the Pain”

Earned pain fades into joy,
Gains a vivid, long liberation.
Each phase dissolving into pure joy — 
Then paradise on the horizon.

Absolved, my eyes grow strong,
Peering into the Ancient Eye,
Improved and brooking no wrong
Approaching paradise, I realize

That these eyes glimpse Thine Eye
And that Thou dost glimpse mine own
Atone and attest that my brown eyes
And Thy sacred sight are one.

Thou dost consume all time, remaining
Infinitely present, never astray — 
An eastern spirit explaining
Morning to the day.

Evoking Thine highest peak
And the valley far below,
My voice can speak
Inside the darkest shadow,

Spiritualizing all space and time
As years drop eternally
Ghost day by ghost night
Journeying through eternity,

Singing in soul silence
Harmonizing with Thy sacred voice.

A slightly different version of this poem appears in the “As Tulips Dance & Sway” section of my published collection Singing in Soul Silence: Voices of Faith.