the surprise of the monarchs

in my backyard, 2014

The Sword of Surprise

Sunder me from my bones, O sword of God
Till they stand stark and strange as do the trees;
That I whose heart goes up with the soaring woods
May marvel as much at these.

Sunder me from my blood that in the dark
I hear that red ancestral river run
Like branching buried floods that find the sea
But never see the sun.

Give me miraculous eyes to see my eyes
Those rolling mirrors made alive in me
Terrible crystals more incredible
Than all the things they see

Sunder me from my soul, that I may see
The sins like streaming wounds, the life's brave beat
Till I shall save myself as I would save
A stranger in the street.

~ G. K. Chesterton                                  

Thank you, Christopher, for another great Chesterton discovery! Although I have to admit, I'm still a bit partial to his essay on "The great art of lying in bed."

The monarch butterflies are traveling through central Oklahoma, making their way down to the hills outside Mexico City where they will roost for the winter.  If you want to read more about this miraculous yearly event, click here.

What a joy it is to sit in my backyard and watch them drop by, like colorful messages from heaven...

art from "The Butterfly" by Patricia Polacco