in her father’s and her mother’s house
(for Saint Patrick’s Day)

Brigid
told her father
about faith
and made a cross of straw
to make her point
that Christ
and faith in Christ
is made of
ordinary things
even life in the spirit
even faith
because the spirit
has been with us
since creation

and was
the cause
of creation

and he believed
and made a kingdom
of it
which might
not seem fair
since
everyone should make up
their own minds
so as
to understand the stakes

and that
the stakes are high
in choosing
one way
or another

which is why
conversion by
a literal sword
let alone doctrinal
isn’t the
best strategy

and
in fact
far from it

believe or not
one by one
and two
and then whatever
however
a family is defined
as in
as for me
and my house

because the house
believes
and then
a group
a temple community
or in said houses
where the faithful
used to meet
at first

you know
where people lived
wherever
sometimes while
persecuted generally
and so to meet
in a hiding
of some sort
with symbols on the outside
exchanged
in a kind
of code

and so Brigid
took her chances
even
with her father
since rule was absolute
back then
and it all could have gone
another way

but she was
and is
connected to the ages
and the land
and maybe she knew
how everything should
fit
and how a cross
of straw
might seem
to teach it all

like bread
and wine
and other things
(straw
a shamrock)
might have an added
use
for spiritual matters

worship
or evangelism

so Christ be with you
in every way
the breastplate indicates
and the faith
as Brigid knew

the cause of Christ
but only
one by one
and then two
and then the group
of however many
is defined
first as family
then a wider
(not political)
community

c l couch


photo by Boston Public Library on Unsplash