A Poem to Begin Eastertide
Light by Sarah Are
In Italian, the phrase, “to give birth”
Literally means, “to bring into the light.”
A mother will labor for hours and days,
Breaking herself for you,
Whispering between fractured breaths,
“This is my body, broken for you.”
A mother will do this as long as it takes
So that you, her beloved,
Have a chance at life.
So that you, her beloved,
Can feel the warmth of the light.
And after all that pain,
The sun will rise.
The doctor will put a baby on her chest.
The mother will hold her child as if
Letting go is indeed physically impossible.
She will breathe easy,
And then she will whisper softly,
“All this time,
All these deep breaths…
It was love, again and again and again.”
It is childbirth,
But it is also resurrection.
A body broken.
Breath fractured.
A long night.
A sunrise.
Breath returned.
New life,
And a love that won’t let go.
Friends, maybe Easter is just God whispering,
“All this time,
All these deep breaths…
It’s been love, again and again and again.”
I think we’ve been standing in the light all this time.
Now that I think of it, isn’t it warm?
