The original:
Psalm 15
A psalm of David.
1 Lord, who may dwell in your sacred tent?
Who may live on your holy mountain?
who does what is righteous,
who speaks the truth from their heart;
3 whose tongue utters no slander,
who does no wrong to a neighbor,
and casts no slur on others;
4 who despises a vile person
but honors those who fear the Lord;
who keeps an oath even when it hurts,
and does not change their mind;
5 who lends money to the poor without interest;
who does not accept a bribe against the innocent.
Whoever does these things
will never be shaken.
The lines that struck me are the first two lines, or the first stanza. The idea that not everyone may dwell in the sacred tent. It is an honor. So my question I asked myself, is what are we dwelling in now? In the meantime? What is the home we are missing out on? I imagine it must not be nearly as pleasant, so instead of focusing so much on what the holy hill will contain, I focused on what the meanwhile must look like in comparison.
Meanwhile
“Lord, who may dwell
in your sanctuary,
Who may live on your
holy hill?” –Psalm 15:1
The cages are empty
Meadowlarks circle in ribbons on yellow and pink.
A decrepit nest atop the chimney
Carries crumbling shells colored with snow.
Mothers do not return for lost chicks.
The swirling spiral of their children
Cannot hear their song.
It is the crackling hearth
It is the crackling hearth
That will set the aerie on fire.
It is the chirps of the hungry
Craning their necks, mouths gaping.
They will wait for open windows
That come from smoke
And smoke and smoke and smoke
Filling their eyes and clipping their wings.
Their lungs inflate with Hope
That knows its way by the song.
They do not hear amidst the holocaust.
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