A Poem: Given Everything

We are given now
everything we need to grow in love,
to share love.
One day we won’t need those other things,
we will just be love.

So today I say to pain, I welcome you,
though I might resist the visit,
your touch is an exquisite tenderness.

And Joy,
you are the Lord of the Dance,
and we, your partners spinning in tandem.
In our momentum is a grace we shed
so that others are caught up.

Love, I will not fear anything
that comes in your name,
though I might be hard of hearing,
slow at recognition.

If its intent is not for my good
then love will topple it,
send it flying sideways.

Otherwise I am a garden prone,
Love’s will for me to flourish.

Ana Lisa de Jong
Living Tree Poetry
February 2022