Jubilate
For I will consider the purest praise
For the last hymned Amen to usher children running
Forward towards the bell tower doors – ornate and heavy –
To clog the entry – excitement keyed higher –
To loosen the rope from its tethered position
To grab all at once for the sturdy three-in-one –
For the holy hush when a child is chosen
For the benediction – the pastor lighter without his robe –
For the pink hands gripped in prayerful submission –
To explode from the stones towards the sky –
to the dirt –
to the heavens return –
For their simple song expands from sanctuary rafters
For the ears of the church mouse and the alley cat –
For the mouths of mountains and nearby mini-marts –
To let the tongue sing out in delight
To raucously clang – clang – cheer and chatter –
To smell mint on ascent – the sweetest incense of reverend’s tobacco
For the door now open – the sun flooding in –
For the children now rushing out into the streets
For the red rocks and prickly cacti hollering holy hallelujahs to the sky.