Precious

What has captured my heart,

carried afar my desires,

carved a cavern deep inside

where every stray thought can hide?

Have I been honest with me--

vested my hopes, tested my habits,

posted hazard signs along

my way to an imminent heaven?

How will Life reward me,

my realizations refusing to rust

and wear out ere Life recedes…

leaving tidal ripples in the sand?

Is it an isolated island I’m treading,

tip-of-an-iceberg paradise

off of which an ignorant step

might immerse me in rich immensity?

Shall I treasure a status quo

with nary a shilling to save a soul,

while sacrificial lambs succumb

on the stony cliffs of the siren?

Tell me, teach me to tally

the cost of the time-denying self

that teeters on the terrifying brink

without the Treasure that is Christ.

MNA

1.24.16