APPROACH THIRSTY
~ By Chelan Harkin
Lately I’ve been praying to Muhammad,
Moses, Krishna, Buddha, Baha’u’llah, Zoroaster, Jesus –
why be choosy?
I ask any source of true love
and great joy
to throw me as any bones
as they might.
Sometimes I pray to Mozart, Bach or Galileo
to pour music or the stars
through me.
Often I pray to Tahirih,
a great Persian poet and feminist
of the 1800s who would remove
her veil when addressing men
and was martyred
for speaking the irrepressible truth
in her heart.
Her final words were,
“You can kill me as soon as you like,
but you will never stop
the emancipation of women.”
I often ask Hafez for a dance
and we go for the most poetic whirls.
Sometimes I ask Rumi
that he pluck me an ancient,
everblooming rose
and I crush its scent
onto the page.
I have a crush on Kahlil Gibran
and ask that he pass me
inspired love notes.
I pray to Harriet Tubman,
that queen of heroism, for courage
and to Einstein
for out of this world ideas.
Inspiration is not elitist.
There is no much
that is off limits,
no genius you should not approach
and ask to be yours.
Oh, beseech whoever you might
that the master keys
that open all hearts
are put in your care,
that your particularly necessary
style of expression
may open new portals of beauty
to the eyes of the world.
Hobnob with all the great
dead poets,
thinkers,
lovers,
artists,
heroes of justice,
leaders of truth,.
They still want a place
to pour their wonder
into the world,
and you are a worthy vessel.
It’s an open bar in the sky.
Approach thirsty,
and ask!
Isnt this just a marvelous poem – with good questions – to whom or what do you pray – and had you considered all these unusual sources?!! I simply love Chelan Harkin’s poetry and I commend her poetry books to you. I hope you'l look for them at your library on orline. . This poem came from her book "Wild Grace". but I highly commend any of her books to you. They are chocked full of funny, honest, moving spiritual poems.
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