(A reflection on Verse Four)
Note to self: Don’t walk by burning bushes
Approach them with a hastened step
Remove your shoes before the white-hot fire
With joy be grateful for the sacred pyre
Face the scorching heat without recoiling
Try not to wince or turn away
Resist the instinct not to be near
And let the flames consume your fear
See the torment through the blazing
Be patient with malice and misery alike
Don’t condescend with pitying remarks
Love the unloved and endure the sparks.
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Copyright Deborah McGlauflin 2010. All rights reserved.
