Daily Acts For the Foreseeable Present - Judith Stone

[Larry Robinson]

 Daily Acts For the Foreseeable Present
 
There still are some simple truths.
The sun does rise, so to speak,
Surrounded each day by a greater or lesser
Intensity of color! It does still set
Over all manner of geography,
 
Even the dimming stars are still here, 
A witness of light across the heavens, the sun and moon
Moving with us, as we too change with the seasons.
 
The cosmos is vast and often incomprehensible.
There are still questions we are fortunate to ask,
With answers that are not large enough for us.
Our holy beginnings are shrouded in story. Yet
 
It is still a good rule of thumb to tell the truth
Rather than lie, to practice the golden rule,
To have a little humility, to use common sense, 
To plant a garden, mindful of all that we love, 
To exercise, to delight in daily acts,  
To value the God-given differences which make us,
And life interesting. This is what we teach children.
 
Meanwhile, while so many species are vanishing,
And light pollution obscures the primordial, 
the force that has long held existence in existence
Is still keeping the beavers busy weaving their dams 
Keeping giraffes, with their many necklaces, 
Elegant and awkward! Rhinos still lumber roly-poly
With pigs and countless kids, into the mud.
The foxes and anteaters are keeping their 
Noses to the ground, for a while, they still 
Can’t get enough off the smell of existence.
 
	- Judith Stone