A Kind of Prayer

This Sunday's writing prompt: in light of the current climate - political, economic, social - make a list of synonyms for worry. Then make a list of antonyms. From that let a poem arise. The results are below.

synonyms for worry

fret

agonize

dwelling on the negative

stew

brood

distress

anxiety

unease

concern

tension

stress

perplexity

misgiving

thoughts of impending trouble

presentiment

synonyms for the opposite of that –

contentment

certainty

confidence

trust

peace

comfort

A Kind of Prayer

In the dead of night,

encompassed, enfolded

in lightless dark,

I can switch on a lamp,

set a match to a candle,

illuminate the shadows,

send them scurrying into corners,

ease my anxious mind

with the familiar –

See? All is recognizable, all is well.

In the daylight,

when dark shadows crowd

the light into corners,

I must find another means of comfort,

Another way to tame the dark,

and so I name things -

there’s a tree, a wall, a sink, a pen,

on and on, until I begin to notice

the leaves are green,

the wall is brick,

the sink is clean,

the pen is blue;

and further still,

the leaves rustle, whisper, dance

the bricks are sun-warmed,

the wall is meant to protect,

the sink is lustrous, gleaming, useful,

the pen, in hand, can set thoughts down,

free them up,

and so the world rights itself

and becomes comfortable again.

Photo by Jean