One Word Prayers (2001) One word prayers were what I practiced on the drive home, trying on the way to see in the night towards San Francisco where a purple glow in the sky distinguished the unseen cityscape. And to the north, metal towers lit with red warning lights, for airplanes to note in the darkness. I was told by a teacher and psychiatrist, short prayers are good while traveling. On the way, the Church prays as it goes and its members do so also. Surprise, interruption there is peace in the evening; as a seeker of God, lover of Christ, I know the distracting onslaught of inner conversation and jangled go diddly bop hyper anxiety unnecessary jaunts to strange spirits, and other ancient enemies that wait in the darkness of the hour in ones mind, like the crocodile brain deep inside. Accept the suffering, and live to God’s presence: my short prayer is “Abba,” I cry. Grief Plays A Part There is no doubt that grief plays a major part in our lives, and the loss of a brother or of a son in an unexpected time is unusual. A parent expects to outlive a son or daughter. In the writing of this poem, there is an expression of grief at the loss of a son who died young. The cause was a heart attack, and the death occurred while the father was with his children. He was in his forties. This is a memorial poem. On the 29th of May my younger brother died, and his death was a grief to my parents. At the time I did not understand the depth of their grief. For many years I recognized that this was a special loss to them, and it has not been until recently, about nine years later, that I have come to recognize and be a participant in this kind of extraordinary grief at the death of someone who is close to us. Some deaths are more difficult than others. I think that the deaths we personally witness, in their struggle and in their request for release, are more difficult for any of us than any other. What brings someone to die so soon when close to another, as my uncle did when he died within days of his wife’s death before their 54th wedding anniversary? I know that the owl calls in the night. “On The Sudden Death of Mary’s Son” To be a greeting in the mist, and come among the Lord. This of the Light of remembrance is a companion of grief, a comfort in the time of loss, a promise in the Resurrection to come. Alas, to have a Son die suddenly, young is a shocking part of the journey. So we sing. (CAPTION) Venerated as the site of Mary’s “dormition”, which holds that Mary did not die but fell into eternal sleep. Dormition Abbey, Jerusalem Photo: Anonymous