this could be the last spring, he said,
404 afternoons ago.
today i saw him examining
the lily of the valley

a life incredible, vivid, excellent.
this could be the last spring, he said,
404 afternoons ago.
today i saw him examining
the lily of the valley
it’s perfectly clear right now,
says the weather report
with a sunny optimism.
it is finished. and
because He lives, that means
this is not the end.
the first tulip bloomed today,
golden as butter,
and i wished i could show you
its delicately frilled petals
it is finished. what’s
the use of words now, Jesus?
silently, tears fall.
yet to come will be the weeping;
let all mortal flesh keep silence
and keep watch.
people die, as sure as they are born
yet the reality always shocks with a start
i wish you could show me the spring —
wildflowers waking up on the creek bank,
catkins greening at the slender ends of oak branches
sunday, and the children wave their palms
with excited eyes and spreading smiles.
palm branches! palm branches! they shout.
prayer
like
sparks.