Revelation - March 25 2023

 

Revelation

March 25 2023

The first opening

is right beside the shore,

a thin black ribbon

of frigid water

between glistening rock

and receding ice.

Widening imperceptibly

as the days lengthen

and spring reveals itself.

So I can no longer cross the lake,

my winter miracle

of walking on water

impossible now.

Perhaps, if I were a taker of risks

or man of faith

I would venture across.

But not now.

Not when miracles are everywhere

in this season of rebirth.

Birds returning

on thousand mile journeys

to their nesting sites,

navigating oceans

headwinds

moonless nights.

Buds unfolding

leaves unfurling

temperate skies.

And the trampled brown grass

that's been dormant all winter

a miraculous green,

resurrecting itself

as soon as snow begins to melt

and soil thaw.

No need

for gods or saviours.

No need to believe

when you can feel the heat

and see for yourself.

I understand, now, why they worshipped the sun;

all winter

scanning the sky

for its hoped for return.

Never quite sure

if they had earned

a merciful god's benevolence.

Or the wrath

of a vengeful one.

Despite being a committed atheist, my poetry often has religious imagery. As is very evident here. . . . Or perhaps because of it: using it ironically, rather than as an expression of faith

Another recurring trope is demonstrated in this poem: a celebration of nature. And frequently with the theme of man vs nature (although not in this one); man as intruder, disrupter, destroyer. A misanthropist as well as an atheist! I guess not exactly a fan of my own species!