Waiting for the Miracle

Waiting for the Miracle

(“Children, guard yourselves against idols.” 1 John 5:21)

We hold our breath, we flip through the hymnal,
we sigh and gasp, we wait for the signal,
we want a sign, we last until midnight
then say goodnight
waiting for the miracle to come.

We erect our flags, prop up our candidates,
we salute the rags we had to fabricate,
red, white and blue; we sing this hymn to you
from wooden pews
waiting for the miracle to come.

We bar the rest, we rebuild torn curtains,
we earn our way, our belief is certain,
we lose our minds, we prize our opinions,
we’re good civilians
waiting for the miracle to come.

We paint the past, we gild it like heaven,
we think we’ll last, our land is god-given,
we walk on tombs, we are immigrants,
it’s just circumstance
waiting for the miracle to come.

And while we wait the poor are limping,
the aged never come down the stairs,
the sick have stopped asking,
their breath reserved for living.

And while we wait the Spirit is calling,
the Father has a banner of his own,
the Son takes down the flagstaff we’ve saluted
far too long

Waiting for the miracle to come.

Some have resorted to self-defense,
others to self-hatred, some to paying the rent;
some have reverted to soil and sawdust,
others imagine gold dust, some do what they must
waiting for the miracle to come.

Some hear in the quiet the cello note underneath it all,
some see graffiti and murals scribbled in a child’s scrawl,
some taste the wine, some touch the bread,
the divine aroma permeates all who know
the miracle has come.