The authority of the ordained—a cardinal’s
calling, his mate’s answer revelatory
of where she is. Dogmatic crows. Canada geese
in a furor, make that Puritanical
furor, over some minor transgression. Whether
I’m here or not, doves in their eternal mourning
on my porch roof. The supernatural vision
of the pond’s red-tailed hawk, its claim on all below.
Fidelity made flesh in the returning great blue,
pair of swans, same migratory mergansers late March,
late November. Three cormorants on a log—each
as if hanging on a cross, drying its wings.
The cloister a hummingbird makes of the moment.
The Authority of the Ordained
Show Comments (
)
Comments are automatically closed two weeks after an article's initial publication. See our comments policy for more.
The latest from america
As we grapple with fragmentation, political polarization and rising distrust in institutions, a national embrace of volunteerism could go a long way toward healing what ails us as a society.
I forget—did God make death?
you discovered heaven spread to the edges
of a max lucado picture book
The joys and challenges of a new child stretched me in ways I couldn’t have imagined.