Poem July 19, 2004 Issue

Gentle strength

Katherine Sanden

when the shadows gather behind you
and the valley deepens before your eyes.
When, about your tall and lovely trunk,
serpentine vines come creeping
to stifle your heavenly aspirations,
be strong! Keep growing upward,
extending your branches to the vast, endless sky.

Be strong!
And arise from your bed this morning.
Walk with courage,
beloved girl.
Even when assurance seems so far away,
be strong, and in your strength,

Be soft, girl, be soft
as the snow which gently falls
and injures not a single soul,
as it follows its course and begins to amass,
forming a pristine blanket
over fields and trees
and roads and cars
alike.

Be soft,
and do not fight the daylight,
but drink in the rays of the rising sun.
Let them glide over your parched throat
and satisfy your hungry heart.

As you journey today, girl, be soft.
Calmly may you walk,
in the strength of forgiveness;
Abandon your heavy step
and your troublesome sorrows.
Let the flame of love burn your burdens to the ground,
leaving you fearless,
happy, free.

Be soft; With tenderness
speak; With simple trust
lift up your eyes; With humility
hold out your hand, and by Wisdom
be led,
dear girl.

—Katherine Sanden
Riverside, Connecticut

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