my friend

who has the bluest eyes

and a frame that grew from a long line of people

who had to learn how to leave

how to stay away from windows

how to light their candles in other rooms

where blessing the light required the body

to be turned inward, away from the outside

{how i have been grafted into the Wisdom tree}

tells me that i should always bake two braided loaves

how this is a blessing, how this is a showing

a reminder that God is enough

that today does not own tomorrow

no matter what my eyes might say

no matter what my faith might find itself afraid of

and there is a long litany of things

that try to grab my attention

how they try to speak my fears

into living, breathing corpses

but for two days, in this home

we will know this bread, we will know the candles

on the kitchen table

the light

how it fills the asking, doesn’t pretend

to have the answers

{there aren’t many about}

only shines right here, right now

everything else yielding to one word,

Enough.

© Liezel Graham 2024