Courageous Hope

“O, Brother Man,
Fold to thy heart thy brother.”

                          John Greenleaf Whittier

We live in mychorrizal communion
With that which we cannot see:
Substance of things hoped for
Not yet called into being;
Courage unbirthed embryonic
Waiting for a time not yet known.
Where is birthed that courage
To gaze through the darkened mirror of certainty
To behold the radiant light of hope?
When is that first timorous step taken
Into the deep unknown,
Trusting that some lambent light will mark the way,
Silencing the frenzied drone of fear
In order that the untamed harmony
Pulsing with life
May be heard;
Resting solely in patient confidence
That the courageous hope which connects us
Is unbound, beyond scope or comprehension?

O Brother Friend
What courage was required that you
Should step into the world you created
Now fallen broken yearning for redemption?
What love
Which would not perhaps
Be requited?
Was it courage to join in covenance
As Servant, Healer, Lover of wounded souls?
Divine grace holds us still in its exquisite thrall

Relentless mercy is yet the garment
That enfolds us as certainly as did that robe
Lovingly crafted by holy hands
For two who spoke with you
Face to face.

O Brother Man
That we should clasp the synchronistic hand
That binds us each to one another
Imputes courage to live in hope
Confidently at rest in sacred certainty
Of glorious resurrection.

*Mychorrizal: fibrous underground network connecting roots of trees, enabling them to communicate with one another

Shared by Nancy Buffenbarger