Hi. I'm new.

I find an empty space

and fill it with my longing

that some day I won’t be the unknown

face in a throng… of future friends?

now screening me out.

De ja vu as I repeat this new performance

loneliness peaking out from behind

the storm shutters of cool

I know this choreography, this dance

of vulnerability

Two feet by two feet aligned

toes pointed at the stage

Hands clenched or pocketed,

faces dipped or tipped,

or dripping salty

Just 75 minutes give or take a few

We greet our pew neighbor

When we’re told to.

And then we give them no more thought

unless they fidget or whisper or crack their knuckles.

Confidence buckles.

Can this new place of old faces

every be familiar?

But I borrow hope from my past self

Recall the shared laughter,

meals, memories.

This sanctuary, like those before,

is for fellow saints and sojourners.

-written on the occasion of attending a new church.

Recent Posts