It is Joy that keeps you.
Comes to us with ‘armloads of salvation’
that at our feet are flowers,
not chastisement.
And Joy are the blooms
we place in the vase
with their everlasting fragrance.
It is Joy that draws you.
To the evergreen tree,
under whose shadows is rest and shelter,
and every fruit in season.
And a river flowing
that our roots grow deep and
drink in nourishment.
It is Joy that persuades you.
Joy, the radiance that suffuses the day
with its soft filters
that we’re not seen in any light but grace.
So that Joy is the last light we see
when closing our eyes,
and the fullness of in waking.
Ana Lisa de Jong
Living Tree Poetry
March 2021
Living Tree Poetry 