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Out of October’s Shadows
(a poem by Fr. Patrick Dolan, the AMI Ecclesiastical Assistant)
The pleasant sun shines one last glance of hope
As it retreats toward southern skies. Earth yields
Few reassuring signs to help us cope
With longer, colder nights and empty fields.
Yet Barren hills reveal the shape of earth
Where sacred fingerprints emerge to show
How dark and light were both part of the birth
God set in place to let creation grow.
Though days grow short as leaves begin to drop,
And cold winds mar the brilliant evening sky,
These cries of nature warn that we can’t stop
The hands of time that claim we too will die.
Though we prefer to keep life shining bright,
We never would see stars without the night.
When bones creak just from rocking on the porch,
And daily tasks include rest in the shade,
These tell us that it’s time to pass the torch.
“For new to shine what’s older needs to fade.”
That chance to shine brings its attendant fear
Of what our lives have written on each page.
Both noble and more shadowed acts appear;
Yet shadows can be faced in every age.
For shadows come because there is a light
That shines for even just a little while,
To help reveal the paths and choice that’s right
For every generation’s special style.
Life grows—then fades—as part of God’s design
To help us soar from “earthbound” to divine.
