Praise | Sojourners

Praise

Praise God for all things green

Lime jello, blades of grass, emeralds

Chameleons, the neon river frog

Heavy papayas begging to be picked

Lilies thrusting their tender shoots through dirt

Love when it knows nothing more than hope

Praise God for all things brown

Hot coffee, sloppy mud, chocolate

The warthog’s tail and Stephen’s hazel eyes

Crafty cinnamon biting with its bark

My mother’s face, as soft as baby skin

Love leaving its stain on colorless days

Praise God for all things red

Round bindi, rose petals, ladybugs

A cardinal, sweet Hannah’s dumpling cheeks

Angry dried chilies waiting to set fires

The line of blood that seals a healing wound

Love giving with no promise of return

Praise God for all things black

Umbrellas, peppercorns, ebony

The zebra’s stripe and Anna’s curly hair

Pungent fish tamarind seeping bitter truth

The thick unseeing darkness of the night

Love struggling when it cannot understand

Praise God for all things white

Shaving cream, smooth eggshells, buttermilk

Albino pigs, rabbits romping in snow

Steaming basmati rice humming a tune

A waterfall half-glimpsed through forest trees

Love reaching through darkness into light

Chandy C. John is a poet, essayist, fiction writer, and pediatrician living in St. Paul, Minnesota.

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Sojourners Magazine September/October 2008
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