It’s National Poetry month. To celebrate, I am offering you four short poems–three by friends and one by me. All the poems have a spring theme. I suggest you read each poem aloud, as poetry is meant to be read. The first poem is by Bishop Robert Morneau of Green Bay, Wisconsin. When some of us think APRIL, we think BASEBALL! So here’s a poem that celebrates baseball, three boys and their dad, and more…
The Bat
Wrigley Field! Sammy Sosa Day! 30,000 bats given away!
A father and his three sons (ages 11, 9, 7) in attendence.
What a day: the field, the food, the fun, the BATS–three of them!
Heading home on the El Train, a young lad sat across the aisle
gazing intently and longingly at the three bats,
treasured and held tightly by the three boys.
As the El reached the fourth station,
the young lad stood up preparing to exit the train.
As the El came to a stop, one of the three sons
walked over and gave his bat to the young stranger.
The train moved on and the father asked
his nine-year-old son why he gave his bat away:
The response: “God told me to.”
What do you think of the father and his three sons? What do you think about the last line?
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Our next poem is by John Hopkins, one of our readers whose poems I’ve featured before on this blog. John is the author of three books of poetry all available on Amazon: Celtic Nan, Make My Heart a Pomegranate, and With Caught Rain. This poem takes us to another place many of us associate with spring: a garden. The poem is entitled “Happy Are They.”
Happy Are They
Happy are they who do the will of God
without knowing it.
They are like that woman
with a broad-brimmed hat,
loose shirt, sleeves rolled to the elbow,
tending to her garden,
bucket and trowel by her side,
not letting her left hand know
what her right hand is planting.
She does not feel the butterfly on her shoulder
or fully know the mystery of seeds,
just the patient hope in things unseen.
Do you think we can be doing the will of God “without knowing it”? Explain your answer. If you are a gardener, why in the world do you garden?
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Our third poem, is by my friend, Catherine. It is a reflecton on Ps. 46:11: “Be still and know that I am God.”
Be still
And be the best to all everywhere
Be still
And be there for all as one “allows, receives, surrenders, and trusts”*
Be still
And know what you are dedicated and committed to
Be still
And know when to fill one’s soul with energy
Be still
* the four words are from Richard Rohr’s book, Yes. And
Anything speak to your heart in this poem? If so, what? What does the photo above say to you today?
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And finally, here’s a poem from my book Just Because: Prayer-Poems to Delight the Heart. Most of us associate spring with birds returning, making their nests, and raising their young. Here’s a poem that describes two little sparrows I happened to spot one afternoon “doing it”…
Two Little Sparrows
Outside my bedroom window on the roof of the porch,
two little sparrows were doing it.
He had trouble with balance at first.
Luckily, she was the epitome of patience.
The whole affair lasted but a moment,
and when they were through,
I clapped!
Why?
Simply because two little sparrows got together
to make new sparrows,
despite the toil of care,
potential storms,
droughts, cats,
and circling hawks everywhere.
What does this poem say to you?
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One of the themes of my little sparrows poem (and all the poems, really) is how the gift of life is incredibly precious and precarious. It demands a “leap of Faith” for us to pass on this gift to others or to nurture this gift in others through our caring, sharing, and love–whether we give our bat away, tend to our garden, or enter into prayer. For me, one song that captures this theme so beautifully is Elton John’s “The Circle of Life” from the movie The Lion King. My prayer for all of us consists of some of the words of this song: May we always remember: there’s more to be seen than can ever be seen… May we never take more than we give… May we recall that the circle of life is a leap of Faith and a band of Hope… May we rise from our falls, soar to the stars (or to the moon and back!), sail through our troubles, and live courageously with our scars… until we find our place on the path unwinding… into eternity.
Click on cc for the lyrics…
I welcome your comments below!
19 Responses
I love your timely blog and especially your poem about the sparrows! I’ve been thinking so much and praying for all those building nests and raising young ones, and wondered if the partly-built nests blew away with the strong winds when our area was under a tornado warning recently. The video clip of the illustrated song expresses joy in being part of LIFE, the joy of creation, of parents having young ones, of celebrating Springtime. We are so blessed by God to be given such a wondrous home that we call Earth and to share that home with other beautiful creatures that bring such delight. I hope we appreciate it enough to preserve it and not merely use it for our own desires.
Why do I garden? I garden for the beauty of it, to share the bounty with my friends and neighbors, to attract pollinators and try to help the endangered Monarch butterfly. It’s a prayer in progress. At the Abbey of Gethsemani, there sits an old engraved rock that says it best, “To cultivate a garden is to walk with God.”
Good morning Sister Melannie and all,
Thank you again for inspiration on a Monday morning. I’m headed to my daughter’s house to babysit my granddaughter. That is something I do that is the will of God and often I don’t think of it that way. It is just “the circle of life”. I see my granddaughter’s face and I’m instantly young again and looking into my own little daughter’s face. Later this week I will begin watching my newest grandson also. Again I’m sure I will look at him and be transported back to when my son was a baby. Life goes on, and I hope I can pass on good lessons to these sweet extensions of myself.
Changing Colors
The white color of snow
Replaced by a flowers grow
Reds yellow green and pink
Landscaped colors like ink
Showing signs of new life
After a barren winter of strife
GJD
Beautiful! The circle of life includes all of the seasons.
Your reflections always give me a lift for the coming week. Thank you!
Thank you for the poems and making me more aware of God’s hand in our circle of life. Love nature and admire God’s hand in all of it!
Thank you for sharing your and your friend’s poems today. There was a beautiful thread woven together. God is always working through our thoughts, hands and nature. If we are fortunate enough to be still, we will see and experience God.
I agree with Barry. There is a wonderful thread woven through the four poems. A wonderful way to start this week.
I don’t think I’ve ever paid attention to the actual words in the song Elton John is singing. The captions helped me and I have a new appreciation for the song.
Thanks for the poems Sr. Melannie! I particularly like the first one with the last line: God told me to. Sometimes that’s all it takes.
God bless us all.
Dear Sister,
This blog is truly a treasure for is all to behold forever.
Today I thank God for the surprise of my life, expecting our lst. Grandchild ,
My husband called me at work at,7AM to tell me our daughter had twins!
I think I will try composing a poem about that today.
Blessings, Marilyn
I loved all the poems, and like Barry Jankord I think I see a common thread. It’s the idea of potent littleness shown in the images of the tiny seed, sign of the something that is helped to grow under the gardener’s care (with John Hopkins); the person who is open to the gifts of the Spirit (with Catherine); and the sparrow fledglings, signs of humility, commonness, vulnerability and being under God’s caring eye, per a Gospel saying of Jesus that people are “worth more than many sparrows” (with you, dear Melannie).
Happy 50 days of the Easter season!
These are all incredible, especially “Happy Are They” by Hopkins. Thank you so much for such beautiful words and encouragement.
All beautiful, inspiring and thoughtful poems and messages today. Such a touching story of the young boy giving away his bat because God told him to.
I love spring and all its glorious gifts; love gardening and watching things grow. Thank you to all the responses today. So many of you have the gift of sharing thoughts and words so profoundly. Thanks for lighting up my day.
Love it!!! 🥲❣️
The baseball bat story moved me SO much that I called my husband over to read it also. At the end, we both had tears in our eyes. He was moved by it as much as I was. Perhaps because we used to take our 3 daughters to Yankee Stadium on bat day when they were little.
Thank you all. You brought joy and peace to my day. God bless.
I talked with a self-taught young person just last week about how he cares for the land his family lives on. First he told me about the rye cover crop he has been growing over the winter to protect the field from erosion and enhance soil health. Then he told me about his plans to grow corn, beans, and squash with the “three sisters” method that was practiced by native cultures: he plants corn first, and when the stalks start growing, he plants beans that will be supported by the cornstalks and fix nitrogen into the soil for the corn, then he plants squash to shade the soil and reduce evaporation for all the crops. I don’t know his religious believes, but I suspect he is doing the will of God without knowing it. He’s providing food for his family while nurturing the soil and allowing the crops to benefit each other. He uplifted me with his enthusiasm and the fact that he is so dedicated to caring for the earth at such a young age.
I also loved the poem you wrote about the sparrows. It reminded me of the some of the reasons I love birds so much. Their perseverance to produce more sweet, singing offspring is uplifting too.
I could relate to the poem about baseball the most. It brought back so many memories. Baseball season is my favorite time of the year. That nine-year-old boy with a power move of all power moves.
What a great music video, too; such great energy 🙂