St. Ursula and the Lord's River

poem; response to Wallace Stevens' "Portrait of St. Ursula"

The good Lord in his garden,
overlooking love's river,
hearkened to Ursula's accord,
and spoke to her from above:
"My dear,
my greatest prayer-giver,
your offering WAS accepted.
Yet your fear
made the soil of My grove
to begin to harden.
Now lift your eyes to me
and listen:
Love's river never ceases in its motion.
I'll reward your devotion.
Have no more doubt;
merely shed one last tear
and its moisture on the ground
will end your heart-drought.

Author's Note

Wallace Stevens' "Portrait of St. Ursula" touched me deeply, and inspired me to write a "sequel", of sorts, which I titled "St. Ursula and the Lord's River". I'm posting, here, 'Lord's River'. (I already posted 'Portrait'.)