This Old House

This is the tale of brokenness made whole.

We are rooms in a mansion;

each one, a chamber of the heart.

Our innermost beings house great halls and vast parlors,
splendorous bedrooms and towering balconies;

convivial kitchens and tables for dining,

studies and gardens and sunrooms, for shining;

a host of stained glass and spiraling staircases;

all of our deep and beautiful places.

We waltz through our ballrooms

and in tea rooms, delight;

we glow near the windows that stream in sweet sunlight;

we wander the halls,

in wonder and awe -

all is lovely -

with each placement of the feet, each tip of the toe,

our skin feels no splinters; no pain our hearts know.

Without a doubt, worth and art

fill the heart of every house;

yet as you walk the wooden floor,

passing by each bolted door,

you keep them locked

and you don't go in -

in fact, you've never looked inside before.

So you move on, strolling pleasantly o'er cherry planks,

across sturdy oak and maple beams;

all solid, rich, and strong, it seems.

Until you reach a stretch of hall you oddly don't recall;

you stare at the cacophonous sight,

blink, double-take, rub unbelieving eyes,

and draw a quivering breath 'neath the flickering lights;

you see the gaping hole;

in place of proper hardwood, there a chasm stood,

descending in shadow, achingly empty, shrouded in dust;

the remains of the surrounding floor were faded, dull, and dim,

every plank dilapidated, worn rugged and thin.

Then, inching forward, you step on that place in your soul

and it groans, like creaking wood

old, hard, dry

and you know that someday that board will break

and as it crumbles,

you will cry. 

But gradually, painfully, beautifully,

tears, broken floors, healing hands and open doors

will wash the splinters from my spirit

as the storms rage and the rain beats upon this old house

and once again,

my heart will be whole.

Where the heart is

The breeze is soft and sweet
Like the lush grass that lifts my feet
I slip through the smell of sun-ripened earth
The sunkissed trees and greenery

I look up as pale dusk washes over the sky
Like an ocean, bright and foaming, bathed in lye
Lofty leaves twinkle as their skin glistens in departing sunlight
Trading heat from summer days for the cool of starry nights

My, how long it's been
Since I've walked the streets I call home
Since I've tread these tree-specked fields
While wet with morning dew
How long it's been
Since I've basked in the streetlights' glow
Since I've walked beside the lakeshore
Where lines are laden with fish in tow

How long I fought to move myself
To the place where the palm trees grow
I often thought to leave this land
Thought, but did little know.

Today, I'm welcomed warmly to this home
Filled with glowing peace
For paradise is in the heart
Among the heartlands
And the seas.