Quotation

He who learns must suffer, and, even in our sleep, pain that we cannot forget falls drop by drop upon the heart, and in our own despair, against our will, comes wisdom to us by the awful grace of God. - Aeschylus

Sunday, January 3, 2016

The Tears of the Moon

The following is a poem I wrote for the occasion of the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God.

"The Tears of the Moon"

Though the sun has been
long before the moon
the moon had not seen
him before his croon
long after she was born.

The tears of the moon
shine upon the face
of the sun who soon
shone in all of space
brightly every morn.

The light of the sun
returns to him once
for each ray the moon
has felt warm her since
his journey had begun.

The tears of the moon
well up in her eyes
as blood from the sun
falls across the miles
on the way of passion.

The light of the sun
flashes as he dies
for all who will burn
to traverse empty skies
and bring only his light.

The tears of the moon
drip upon the face
of the sun who soon
gives life to our race
long after he was born.

Though the sun will shine
long after the moon
the moon will have life
from the ancient sun
within his timeless fire.



Notes: The word croon is here used in its older sense of lament or mourn.  For those who like to speculate on the meaning of the poem and get it horribly wrong, I will explain what story it is telling.  It is the story of the birth of Christ crying as a newborn, and the story of Mary crying at his death using the moon as a metaphor for her and the sun as a metaphor for Christ.

Credit for the icon on ceramic goes to some wonderful nuns in Lebanon. Photo credit goes to me.

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