Welcome to 31 Days of Poetry & Writing Prompts–Day 17.

Happy Monday! Sometimes Monday morning arrives, and well, It feels like a Monday. But other times, at the end of one of those run-run-run weekends, I look forward to Monday, for the ability to carve out a little downtime and recover from the weekend.

Today’s poem offers an invitation I’m planning to attend to. In between grocery shopping and pulling the house back together, I’ll be taking a little time to sit out in the sun and listen, and I hope you’ll do the same. Enjoy…

The Word

by Tony Hoagland

Down near the bottom

of the crossed-out list

of things you have to do today,

between ‘green thread’

and ‘broccoli’ you find

that you have penciled ‘sunlight’.

Resting on the page, the word

is beautiful. It touches you

as if you had a friend

and sunlight were a present

he had sent from someplace distant

as this morning—to cheer you up,

and to remind you that,

among your duties,

pleasure is a thing

that also needs accomplishing.

Do you remember?

that time and light are kinds

of love, and love

is no less practical

than a coffee grinder

or a safe spare tire?

Tomorrow you may be utterly

without a clue,

but today you get a telegram

from the heart in exile,

proclaiming that the kingdom

still exists,

the king and queen alive,

still speaking to their children,

–to anyone among them

who can find the time

to sit out in the sun and listen.

///////////

This morning, I drove across town to stripes of pink and purple.

Like wide strokes from the Sun’s paintbrush, they filled a light blue morning sky. I had to come home and google it to find out why. I was always just enduring science class when I was in school. It’s not like I remember these things.

Back then, I took the sun for granted. It was simply there every morning, like the moon and the stars came out at night. I didn’t really care why or how or wonder, what if it hadn’t been?

I just knew that it was, and it always would be.

I love the picture Scripture gives, when it compares God and His glory with the sun. It calls Jesus Christ the rising sun from heaven.

Because of the tender mercy of our God,

by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven,

to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death,

to guide our feet into the path of peace.

Luke 1:78-79

This was part of Zechariah’s prophecy from the Holy Spirit. It came to him after he doubted God’s plan and had to remain silent for an extended time. (Read Luke 1 for more of this story.)

Just after this, Jesus was born into the world. The rising sun came to us from heaven.

People walking in darkness saw a great light.

We know another day is coming, and for those who do not serve God, it will be a day of judgment. But for all who revere His name–

The sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its rays.

(Malachi 4)

So pencil it in today, no matter what else you do. Take the time to sit with Him and listen. Let Him proclaim to your heart in exile that the kingdom still exists.