Friday, July 31, 2020

John Lewis (1940-2020)



Yesterday I watered the flowers
Tears washed my ruddy cheeks
Dripped downward
Toward Earth
The soil we grow
Sprout, spread and
Invigorate

What is it that touches
The soul but a feeling of
belonging, to a higher
Greater brother- and sisterhood
Memories renewed
Cued by a simple 
Word or tune or thought

John Lewis's body in a casket
Still moving, forever determined
To reach the other side of
The bridge 
Another crossing, more
Good trouble
Greater days 

Win today, struggle again
Not Tomorrow, now
Turn an ideal into
An act
Move on
Justice never waits 
Or lingers too long

Three presidents plus one
Testify for John, his courageous
Self-sacrificing nonviolence
The immutable arc
Martin Luther King
Sharecropper's son
River of love

The voice, the piano
Notes resonate toward
Heaven, where is Heaven
Water the soil from
The soul through the eyes
Hold up your hands
Reach out

A cleansing, a baptism 
Reborn again and again
And again, again
Always a crossing
Look for a sign
The way is the path, now
Hold head high

Reduced to a teardrop
A vote
A sign
An intention
To be righteous
To be inclusive
To live and die, repeat


 




4 comments:

  1. Kevin, this is wonderful. I just watched the Obama eulogy. John Lewis is an American hero.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thank you! I don’t know your name.

    ReplyDelete
  3. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Lovely, insightful, profound words for the ages.

    ReplyDelete