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September 2023

Too Much and Too Awful

(x = space)

x

x

Too Much and Too Awful

x

In Morocco

There’s an earthquake

That kills

A millennial

Of people

x

And homes of people

Health among the wounded

And repair

x

So exotic

That’s where

Casablanca is

And Fez

And on the way

To Timbuktu

x

I’m sorry

For the images

I should think for real

Of all you need

Just now

x

For all the rushing there

To help you

With my dollars

And my prayers

Hardly worthwhile

Not like MSF

Or Red Crescent

(who are)

But a little bit

In the right way

Of things

x

And is there air enough

Water

Food

Other things

You need

Everyone needs

x

A restoration

And improvement

And prevention

x

The moments now should be for

Wrapping wounds

For lifting beams

And rocks askew

And everything

To find you

And to help you

x

God is there

We are there

Too

As best we may

And may it be good enough

In act

And thought

Enough for now

x

And of course

You’ll heal your own

With what you have

And given time

x

God hears your cries

Has heard destruction

Happening

Toward what wisdom

Cosmic meaning

We don’t know

x

Provision

As with war

This is a war for time

And bandages

And presence

And money

Building supplies

And more intimate sustenance

For people

x

And mourning

And faith

And keep going

x

C L Couch

x

x

Photo by Tobias Tullius on Unsplash

Essaouira, Morocco

x

1

ring

(x = space)

x

x

ring

x

God is here

thank goodness

God is there

in Ukraine

in war

and Morocco

split earth

many lives taken

x

in the hundred-plus

degree days

in Texas

for those

trying to live there

and before the hurricane

call one Lee

while we are in ships

on land

securing

waiting

knowing there will be destruction

during

and after

re-life-building

keening

grieving

for the loss of us

anywhere

x

we still wait for freedom

God approves

and works resistance

and diplomacy

risks offense

Jesus was offensive

and still turns

the heads of certain people

x

souls

and daily lives

devotion on a string

that breaks

that someone cuts

to ruin

or to barricade

x

God persists

in presence

in numbers

yes

God has the Earth

all given satellites

and other worlds

but take it one by one

even

with respect

and certainly with truth

the kind a Pilate

may not know

or want to know

x

debate

sure

work your fallacies

and jaw agendas

or shut up

shut down

look at the world

with any

and all senses

in all seasons

x

God is there

you won’t believe

and it’s a place to start

like rain

to put out our fires

snow to cool the deserts

or fire

parametered

to thaw the frozen

x

listen

talk

give up

what must be given up

yes

me

too

x

enough grammar to share

and all civility

that’s dignified

respectful

God will take us there

as in the wilderness

the chaos

we can no longer

count

because the crazy overwhelms

sometimes

x

God is here

sorry

we can go rounds on this

or leave it go

experience it

or not

we could step over this

to save in our ways

that are constructive

building up

that is

tearing down what only

tears down

x

love and live the rest

even God might say

that is enough

for now

stepping around

certain stanzas

that divide

unusefully

not for distinction

or thick conformity

x

rather the unique

formal

free

x

C L Couch

x

x

Photo by Ben Wicks on Unsplash

x

1

Plain

(x = space)

x

x

Plain

x

Sigh

It’s Friday morning

We’re told

The heat is crested

So low 90s today

Which still is hard

For those of us

From here

Above equators

(there are two

you know

tell Ecuador)

And the tropic lines

x

We’ll breathe into Saturday

Be grateful

When it rains

Maybe too much

But they will break

The drought

As well

x

And these are

My

And our

Issues

Over here

How is it where you are

How is your health

And your family

How is your neighborhood

And any community wider

You are

Or must be part of

x

I am perforce

American

Though America is huge

And we tend to take the name

And then apply it

To one part

x

You are French

Or Nigerian

Or Indian

Chinese

From idealized Tibet

From Ukraine

From Russia

x

You might be from the South

Or the Northwest

Or the Northeast

Maybe all the way up

(we say)

To Maine

Maybe you know

Or encounter at the supermarket

Stephen King

x

These are places

In the USA

In France

You have

The Côte d’Azur

In Greece

Santorini for an island

(that might have been the home

of Atlantis)

In Egypt

The upper Nile

Into Ethiopia

That was Nubia

In China

There’s the Gobi

The severest place on Earth

x

And there are the people

We are people

There

x

Inhabitants of the world

The team of Earth

One people

Now we’re leaving it

And shall need identity

x

Should we live in peace

Appreciating our diversity

All

The shapes and sizes

In our making

And our choosing

The lives we have

That is

The lives we make

x

And we should make them well

And have the freedom

To do so

Too direct

Too easy

Maybe

x

But too bad to be good

Sometimes it’s easy

Put it down

The weapons

And the prejudice

Evil conditioning

Perhaps

Somewhere inside

Take up something better

Food to share

Safe water

The love of life

You know

That someone else

A group perhaps

Might need

x

C L Couch

x

x

Photo by Yuriy Bogdanov on Unsplash

x

0

But I Couldn’t Wait

(x = space)

x

x

But I Couldn’t Wait

x

What do you need today

And shall you have a good day

Well

I hope so

Our heatwave indicates

It’s peaked

And now is rolling slowly

In a gradual decline

With something like a cold front

Following

Bless the Gulf

Bless Canada

x

It is September

Not so much left

To the year

But there shall be autumn

First

The colors in the east

First in the north

Wind and rain

Shall be cool

And cold

Clouds might roll over

In long banks

Enormous curves of gray

And of walking under

Layers

While trees are beautiful

School buses are bright yellow

A somberness arrives

As that season finishes

And sentinels

The next

When much of nature

Shall be sleeping for a while

x

Those days are off

A while

It’s very hot today

The sky conflicted

Between blue and clouds

The kind of clouds

That augur the last of warmth

In rain

For summer

x

The Lord watch over you today

Even better than at Mizpah

Which I was taught

Was mostly civil

Might we do better

With agendas

And without them

May we simply listen

And respond because we’re kind

Allowing ourselves to be suspended

In belief

And the tension

Of knowing

How it is with you

Because we want you well

Honestly

With more

x

C L Couch

x

x

Photo by Trif Razvan on Unsplash

x

1

A Wish for Songs to Be Enough

(x = space)

x

x

A Wish for Songs to Be Enough

x

Love, love, love, love

The Gospel in a word is love

Love each other

Sister, brother

Love, love, love

x

(with a little adapting)

x

Dona nobis

All the songs

We used to sing

x

Often away from buildings

On retreats

A time at camps

Sometimes with circles

In the woods

Even farther away

A distance from our cabins

And the lodge

x

I thought these

Were sanguine places

And the songs

Well

They meant something

And I think they did

And they did

Though there were leaders

Sweating out the details

While we sang

About the program hours

When

They’d have to let us go

Let us be ourselves

A little

For a while

x

It didn’t matter

I wouldn’t be me

For anything

Too many inside things

Contradicting

Outside complacency

While adolescing

x

Then I would return

To find out

The lyrics didn’t matter

The guitars

Or a cappella

Hands in hands

(tentatively)

Singing of no boundaries

But freedom

In the Lord

That

I guess

No one believed

We were on hold

Is all

For part of a weekend

Then return

To homework

And

All of our prejudgments

We had gotten

From our parents

And each other

x

Sigh

Youth groups

And time away

And when away from that

Seeking the green

Leaves and breathing

In and out

Among them

With the better oxygen

Provided there

x

Then back

Always back

For a retreat

There never was advancing

After

x

C L Couch

x

x

Photo by Michael Krahn on Unsplash

x

0

Nicene Intention

(x = space)

x

x

Nicene Intention

(universal method)

x

God is God

And God becomes

Human

And as God and

Human

May serve as the

Mediator

Both in between

And on both sides

A sacrificing

(needn’t be done)

Remarkable

Negotiating strategy

To be in the middle

Also moving

Through each side

x

It’s real

It’s blood-won

It involves an intimate

Awareness of

Divinity and

The temporal through sin

And loving everyone

Inside everyone

Bring to bear

Reconciliation to the table

All parties

With a nod

That meant

I died for this

For you

For everyone

And everything

On sides

And at this table

One way or another

Now

x

Call it an altar

Or a cairn

A memorial

A space

That existed with all spaces

Before Sarah

Before Abraham

Before Buddha

Or Mohammed

(bless the name

and bless all names

approved)

And we have much to do

Then and now

Though now

For the mortal side

Is fair

x

Earth shall be fair

As a result of this

Mortal and divine

Working out

What is good

What is victory

What shall be the means

To believe in

And proceed from there

Toward Earth and us

In paradise

In time

Now

Then tomorrow

Breaking time

In fact

So that we have primal

And evermore

Perfection

With all wonders

Wonderful things to do

Each moment

That bears

And shall express

Forever

x

C L Couch

x

x

Photo by Josh Applegate on Unsplash

x

0

By Gosh

(x = space)

x

x

By Gosh

x

God

Sorry

God

You’re not sorry

In this way

I am

And I presume upon

Your

Intimateness

I seek your pardon and

Too often act

Assuming it

x

There is your mercy

For intention

And grace

For your means

And these are bestowed

Free of us

Our institutions

Our intentions

All of them

x

What we might do

Or think

And shall you always love us

Yes

You will

We are nothing new

And always new

Oldly

And newly

You forgive us

Even direct us away

And it helps

When we cooperate

x

Forgive us now

Forgive me now

Your will be done

And all or ours

Somehow

Beyond our doctrine

And the statements of our creeds

We need them

They compass-point us

We need you more

Who are

The magnetism

Earth and sky

And everything

That follows you

For being made

And not for looking

For you

For they know

You’re there

And frankly

You are here

x

We have to know

We have the will

That took us out of Eden

In the way

Of will

As we shall have it

And while the evidence

Mortally is lousy

Still

We come to believe

With everything

We are

x

Wow

A paradox of understanding

And enactment

Fortunately

There are the words

And there is revelation

In the words

And truth worth following

Unto the last

x

But wishing

Wishing

We could have more

We could meet you

And you’d take us

Hand in hand

As metaphor

More like cell to cell

For real

x

What is real

What is truth

You are both

You give us both

And more

And should we be

Grateful

x

For all we know

And must sigh into

What we don’t

And let that be all right

It is faith

After all

By definition

And by will

x

And how do you want us

But by will

Without the concrete obligations

In our love

But our love

With the best evidence we have

Or more important

Anyway

x

C L Couch

x

x

Photo by TopSphere Media on Unsplash

x

1

Halfway Home

(x = space)

x

x

Halfway Home

x

The sacrifice

Of your shed blood

He said

On our behalf

In prayer

His words the surrogates

A shadow

Of the death itself

x

Horribly

A bleeding body

Shed of its spirit

At the last

A life too pure

A sacrifice

For us

x

Yet there it was

In expiation

Half redemption

For our sins

x

The weight of everything

That hates

Crushing his body down

Pushing out his spirit

On to Hades

Or Valhalla

To Gehenna

Or to Sheol

As it’s understood

To name it

x

Half the promise

The brutal

Ugly

Barbarous part

Complete

And it is over

He said it was finished

Maybe it is

x

C L Couch

x

x

Photo by Didssph on Unsplash

x

0

Late Human Summer

(x = space)

x

x

Late Human Summer

x

The alphabet of storms

Goes on

Blows on

When the alphabet is done

I wonder

If we add prime marks

To letters

Going back to A again

(with prime)

x

The sun is out

We’re getting a heatwave

Because we’re bad

No

Only because

(the only reason is because

though

yes

as a species

we may take blame

for vicissitudes

in climate)

x

Other things have happened

In the night

The hours between day and day

I enjoyed the company of

Friends

And so was lucky

x

I was not on either side

Of war

There was no explosion

Not even verbal

‘Cause we like each other

And otherwise would disrupt

The ritual

Like dropping wine

Or leaving bread crumbs out

In Communion

x

Not that things don’t happen

‘Cause they do

I get The Daily News

And should read to know

Who has killed whom

In shockingly

Petty ways

That had treated victims

As sponges

Softly receiving weapon plunges

Or shots

Sometimes by ghost guns

Now that we have

Ghosts for guns

x

But I’ve only been up

For a while

And haven’t been in touch

With the world

Which will change soon

Or I could take the day off

From the rest

Of us

Except for you

x

C L Couch

x

x

Photo by Arno Senoner on Unsplash

x

0

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