ash Thursday


we take the ash
once a year
on
foreheads a dark
cross
that becomes misshapen
as the hours pass
along and
some might talk about
the soil
mark
on the forehead
but
the rule is let the stain stay there
for the day
and
into night

finally
to clean

all to be minded of mortality
as if
we were not aware the time
is boundaried
by birth revealed
and
then birth closed over


[dark day today is all]


c l couch



photo by Guillaume Bleyer on Unsplash


I’ve been especially sick for some days now.  I thought I must have caught something and had been told that with heart disease and compromised immunity that even small infections matter more.  Then friends reminded me about the haze from Canada that has been moving regionally and is passing, more like settling, where I live as well.  So maybe it’s both causes: some minor infection with the addition of what’s so much worse for those closer to the fires.

Anyway, in response to concerns, I thought I should say something about what’s happening.  Thank you so much.