by Sheila Dougal
A HOUSE FOR GOD
They say no good thing comes easy.
They say,
Give it your blood, sweat, and tears.
Give it your all, pour it out, every last drop.
We would all be dead, of course.
They say Jesus exhaled, “It is finished.”
Poured all his blood, sweat, and tears.
Every last drop blending with Adam’s years,
Binding together the broken pieces of my mangled life
With the jagged edges of another.
A Holy amalgam holding us together.
A Kintsugi house for God.
THE CARDINAL
I hear him piercing
Through Mockingbird cacophony
He speaks like no other
His invitation song
When I respond to
the story he tells
From the crown of the tree
He flys away quickly
A flash of crimson
Ascending into the blue
Sheila Dougal
Sheila is a blue-collar poet, writer, gardener, soap-maker and nurse raising backyard chickens and goats in the rural low deserts of Arizona with her husband and sons. Her poetry and essays can be found at various print and online publications. You can also find her at SheilaDougal.com, and on Substack at @plantedlife.