crosses on crosses on
crosses on crosses
on crosses on crosses to
preternal forces
to say that it mattered and
mattered and matters
to maker and whittler
and gluer and hanger
who wandered and pondered
and put down this root hence
and dug deep dark sod for
his home and our sentence
for deeds done in haste
and in passing unthoughtful
for things lost to time but
in memory still awe full
crosses on crosses on
crosses on crosses
for his mercy bought dear
and our own poor responses.
The Rev. Len Freeman, a veteran religious journalist and Episcopal priest, has lived a fairly rich experiential life over 50+ years of parish and national communications work. He served as head of communications for Washington National Cathedral and Trinity Church Wall Street as well as being the film/media critic for national church publications, and a Forward Movement author. His poetry comes out of his inner, spiritual, observational life and a not-always-observed retirement discipline of writing a poem a day and taking a walk a day. He lives in Minnesota with his fellow priest/author spouse Lindsay Hardin Freeman.
The Rev. Len Freeman is adjunct clergy at St. David’s Church in Minnetonka, Minnesota.