Morning Devotional - Feb 24 2023

 

Morning Devotional

Feb 24 2023

Each morning

I sleepwalk through the ritual;

going through the motions,

reassured

by its familiarity.

The heavy porcelain mug

cupped in my hands

as if in prayer.

Its warmth

comforting me,

its weight

a rock of constancy.

The rich aroma

infusing the house

at the speed of smell.

The power of scent

in and of itself.

How wood-smoke speaks of winter

wet soil of spring,

while summer

is fresh-cut grass,

still green, and succulent.

Or incense, at Sunday mass,

sending a signal

that this is a special place,

set above

the day-to-day.

Eliciting reverence

in the faithful who have sinned,

purity

in the sinners seeking grace.

The hot black liquid,

its mystical charge.

All it takes

is that first glorious sip

and I'm jolted awake;

caffeine

straight to the brain,

zinging each synapse

on a path to enlightenment.

And like some charismatic preacher

and the laying-on-of-hands

I am overcome;

speaking in tongues,

shaking ecstatically,

tempting venomous snakes.

Or at least I feel that way.

Then carry on

the rest of the day,

fully awake

as of nothing out of the ordinary happened;

glancing at the news,

stuck in traffic,

manning my desk.

The ritual repeating

day after day.

As familiar

as the morning matin

I learned in childhood,

rubbing the sleep from my eyes

and returning to the world.

Weak tea for the sickly

herbal for the virtuous.

And coffee for the rest —

the roasted bean,

the accustomed routine,

and the jolt of caffeine

to send me on my way.