My Grandmother's grace

Detail

It may be that somewhere else
more important things are at stake;
angels and infantas,
robes and raiment,
a haloed revelation
with uplifted hands,
that the truth's already blazing away,
a woman's life is being changed for good.

I'd rather put my faith
in a light like this:
the chastening gaze
of a china cup
set against a pewter dish
the color of an overcast sky;
its delicate and sobering touch
as if remembering the face of a loved one
who ate at this table daily.

Esther Morgan, Grace

Short listed for the T.S. Eliot Prize


Our sweet nephew, ~gj , sent us a slim poetry volume this week as a gift and a gift it is indeed. He was recently graced with an opportunity to hear the poet voice her own words. He just described to me, on a long distance phone call, the way she spoke. His description sounded like her spoken phrases slowed everything down, making the audience hang in greedy anticipation as she shaped each line.
There are so many images of details missed in our daily lives that come to mind...


http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2012/jan/06/grace-esther-morgan-poetry-review

Esther Morgan

For the Record,
This day came in with fog, the world shrouded in pewter light.