A GOOD NIGHT'S REST 1917A Poem by Terry CollettA YOUTH IN AN ABBEY IN 1971 AND HAUNTED BY A WOMANStood in the cloister with the other monks in the evening chill before Vespers, Dei ornent in omnibus, all things in God Gareth said quoting Spinoza, cold water in morning wash in icy jug of water into a white bowl hands to face and neck, lavabis me et super nivem dealbabor, these are my pearls she said and this is my purse of joy plunge into me, I passed the tall monk on the stairs he nodded a notice he carried a big book beneath an arm, if every tiny flower wanted to be a rose spring would lose its loveliness Therese said, Hugh said perfection lay in doing God's will but without God we cannot reach perfection at all, I cleaned the toilets on the upper floor with mop and bucket smelt of disinfect, the old monk was dying and once talked of Plainsong in high places and I washed him and dried him, in the shadow of her wings I made hot love like one possessed, the church so silent so utterly still I felt it in my bones and soul, the monk with a limp limped into the choir stall bowing his tonsured head, refrain from evil words on account of the penalty of the sin Benedict said, some evenings before Compline I would wander the drive towards the road and curse in the night air to get it(frustration) out there, moon in shadow of a cloud in the night sky and stars sparse to the eyes, when I see the short duration of my life used up in the eternity before and after the small space which I fill cast into the infinite immensity of spaces of which I know nothing and which doesn't know me I am frightened Pascal said, pour voir à l'infini, the space between her thighs where the body lives but the soul part dies, enjoy me she said enjoy me as if a small boat on a vast sea, the French peasant monk dug the ditch with an angel at his shoulder whispering the Notre Père his hands calloused but maybe blessed, I turned out the lamp by my bed and sought (without her in my bed or head) a good night's rest. © 2016 Terry Collett |
StatsAuthorTerry CollettUnited KingdomAboutTerry Collett has been writing since 1971 and published on and off since 1972. He has written poems, plays, and short stories. He is married with eight children and eight grandchildren. on January 27t.. more..Writing
|