Lowly, at the Panorama and Other Poems

by Courtney Moody

LOWLY, AT THE PANORAMA

Every mountain needs descent, or else there is no awe.

Peaks only exist when cliff drops are present,

granite daggers sharp, with the promise of gravity.

The laws created for this realm do not bend

to trophies, bribery, or good works. Look down;

Vertigo is the prophet, giving the omen to warn you against, 

thinking you can fly with featherless arms.

This height, a view fit for prophets and kings,

but beneath the taste of pine winds and cloud cover, there is only dust.

Dust to climb out of, dust to descend into.

To wash the flesh of the feet, one must bend. 

The spine to see them, like a tree after the hurricane.

A falcon takes flight and soars on thermal updrafts, but knows that first—

it must dive.

HOW TO CONQUER A MOUNTAIN

Abandoned quarry, quiet on a mountain,

scratches the sky and makes holes in clouds.

Wind expeditions carry seeds never meant for limestone soil.

Cracks in the rock open their mouths wide to consume.

Beneath the surface, the seedling fight

the pebbles that once slayed giants. But the roots find a way.

Leaves push through. When the seed is forgotten,

lupine breaks into sunlight with the scent of honey,

and petals of indigo as a victory flag, whispering a war song:

I have overcome. 

SQUINTING THROUGH CUMULONIMBUS

There is a time when

Heaven kisses Earth,

when the skies are painted

grey and their watercolors

race drippings into the sea.

Everything is a silent film

as far as the eye can hear,

and the sole umbrella

is the scent of death and

the whistles of wind

over goosebump arms

like angels’ breath:

It’s a greyscale terrain,

and somehow we find

Heaven in the shading.

COURTNEY MOODY

Courtney Moody is a writer, choreographer, and creative of faith. Her work has been featured in various publications, including Christianity Today, Ekstasis, The Way Back to Ourselves, and Brain Mill Press. In 2022, her poem “Florida Anatomy” was awarded 2nd place for the Florida State Poet’s Association Award, and in 2025, she received honorable mention for Voice & Virtue’s poetry chapbook contest. She is currently an Assistant Editor for Vessels of Light and Rehearsal Director for Dance Theatre of Tampa.

She can be found on Instagram @courtofwriting and Substack at One Foot in the Next World.