Paean

Psalm 92:4 For you, O Lord, have made me glad by your work; at the works of your hands I sing for joy.

On any given day,
I wear a sheen of
Dried cat food and drool,
Dog hair,
And bird droppings.
My second biggest monthly expense
Is pet food,
Followed by other pet bills.
The busyness of my days is filled with
Walking dogs,
Giving sub-qs to my dying cat,
And parading around the neighborhood
With a gold-capped conure
On my shoulder.

O Lord,
My Lord God,
Creator of Heaven and Earth,
How do I explain the joy
Of sleeping on a couch
With three dogs,
Or watching the dogs run
For Adalheid's backyard?
How do I explain the wonder
When I see the parrots' pupils
Dilate like a camera lens, or
When my eyes hurt from
Their iridescent feathers?
I watch Pete the insatiable goldfish eat,
And laugh as he clinks the stones
At the bottom of his tank,
Ever searching for food.
My beige cat hungers for affection;
After thirty seconds
He weirds out,
Scratches me,
And runs away.
He has always been peevish;
I love him nonetheless.
The tumor is growing
Beneath the gray cat's tongue.
I am grateful to spend
Another day with her
Before she journeys
Home to You.

I am surrounded by Your creatures,
The manifold works of Your Hands.
I call, and they come.
I whistle, and they know me.
They bark or meow or shriek
A greeting, a "welcome home,
We missed you today!"

O Lord,
I can marvel at Your creatures,
And the joys of creation,
And know that You are Real,
And Good, and Holy.
I can feel my interconnectedness
Shoot outward,
Shoot upward,
Encompassing grass and trees and sky.
I can fall into the night sky,
Looking upon the stars,
And the story that they tell.*
I humbly bow down before
Your majesty and forethought.

I am as nothing;
My days on this earth are numbered,
But I am Yours,
And I long in my soul
To be Home with You.
Until I get there,
Thank You for this creation,

Shadow though it may be

Of the Glory to be revealed...

* The Witness of the Stars by E. W. Bullinger