Dusky Goodness
Poem of summer stillness & silent hours
it is good perhaps that flowers are fleeting
they do not linger too long
their welcome never wears thin
their presence does not overstay.
goodness is not measured by length but depth
and for all the wrong days I have known
(and I have known more than a few in my time)
the vast goodness of the good overwhelms the wrong entire.
do not think I do not know, as you do,
that darkness is measured out in depths too
but without such shadows, the coming light
could never break and brighten before us.
amid the stillness of this drowsy heat,
in the quiet of this near-done day,
night returns not to overshadow the good
but to reveal yet again the fleeting glory of our days.
Great poem. I appreciate the opposites. Seems to make me more appreciative. The summer heat makes me appreciate those less humid days of spring and fall. Those winter freezing temperatures make me more appreciative of the temporary summer heat. My days of not living for Christ makes me more appreciative of Christ's mercy and grace and my current relationship with Him. My saddest days make my happiest days even better. Chaotic and stressful times make me appreciate those quite times of reflection.
Yesterday I was sitting on a swing underneath a very large tree in my backyard. I thought about how pretty it was, but also how old it was. How it started as a sapling and has grown immensely. It must be at least a sixty year old tree, perhaps older as I'm not an expert in detirmining tree age. It probably seemed much less significant in its youth. I also thought about all of my memories sitting under that tree, it was always there for me, it was where I was able to properly think. I recalled taking a picture of it when I was about fourteen of fifteen. In a way, though non-sentient, that tree is one of the best friends I have ever had. I don't visit it enough anymore. It has been there in moments where I needed it, with that rusty swing that has been there since I was a very young child, some moments happier than others, some coming from a place of dread. However, the tree, and the pond that stood across it, have always been a comforting presense that gave me a sense of hope.
I feel an overbearing sense of dread frequently, but I also see the trees. There are much more ephemeral joys out there, a sunny day to be followed by the inevitable rain, seeing the right person at the right time. All of those moments, while temporary, are still meaningful. And those moments come back in some way, perhaps slightly differently than before. There will be more sunny days. There will be more times that I spend with the people who I care about, and hopefully they care about me too.
I hold on to the trees, the good memories, and everything else to remind me that amongst the horrors of the world, there is beauty to be found as well. I must allow myself to see it however. I have it better than many, but even people in the most devastating of situations can find something to find beautiful.