Nonet for the Burdened

There is so much more to accomplish,
More than we can possibly do,
But we are not the Savior,
And even he would rest,
Teaching us to trust
And, sometimes, to
Let go and
Simply
Be.

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A nonet poem offers a form that is both wonderfully simple and endlessly creative. Nine lines, with the first line having nine syllables, and each subsequent line having one fewer, until the last line with its one syllable. I began this particular nonet with the last line, “Be,” and worked up from there. I wanted to honor a prayer that I first learned from Richard Rohr which also ends with the word, “Be.” It is a prayer based on Psalm 46:10. Here it is:

Be still, and know that I am God.
Be still, and know that I am.
Be still, and know.
Be still.
Be.

There are times when the most important thing that we can do is simply be. We are not, as others have pointed out, “human doings” – we are human beings. And sometimes we need to remember that, remember to let go and simply be. Be still and know. Be still and trust. Be still and rest in God’s presence. And then return to all that awaits us with renewed faith and energy. Hence my nonet, for the burdened.

The picture used in this post, by the way, is of the Sea of Galilee, where Jesus once slept through a storm. Teaching us to rest, and to trust, and sometimes, to simply be.