Evocation #19 Silence and Prayer

There have been days without you before.
Lengthy journeys, days of busy,
time zones imposing distance of days and nights,
far greater than numbering continents or seasons.

We talked on phones,
our partnership growing with technology’s advances.
Whatever the time and place,
everything stood still
when we uttered tender phrases,
assurances of some normality
to shrink the globe to our size.

How then shall we shrink Heaven and Hell to suit?
If I ever assumed a direct line to God, it is forsaken now.
Your silence... God’s silence...
constantly wondering what you would say...

Catches of panic well up unexpectedly - unbidden.
Yet, somehow they are a comfort,
breaking through the constant numbness.
I try to exhaust my body with mundane tasks.
A clear day, without smokehaze, seems almost offensive.
Isn’t hell arrived and consuming all love and lifeforce in its path?
“Don’t go out” commands the daily advisory,
while marathon toil breaks the backs
of those who would confine the flames.

And so a prayer:

  Gathering One, teach us to pray...
  When phones are silence and batteries are flat,
  We hold before you those we love.
  We hold before you those we grieve.
  We hold before you homes and gardens and memories.
  We hold before you forgotten hope.
  In our distress, we long for your hand, your voice, your guidance.
  Lay your mercy as a coverlet over all - 
  those who name you 
  and those who are not acquainted with your grief. 
  Remember the pain of loss and weeping.
  Restore our souls to fulfil the calling of today 
  and grant eternal rest and banqueting 
  to all in time. 

     (C) A A Koh-Butler, 2019