We caught the cadences and whispered
some notes aloud, but thin psalms
were
all that we could sing alone.
We took the random modes,
placing faith in their falling thus,
sometimes wondering in their patterns,
but more often subject to their
whim;
for that was not defeat, but victory.
And we trust that what we are today
is not all that we can be.
We don't know the ending
of the song being sung,
but we know our god takes life in every line,
a rich psalm that sings itself
and blesses us with antiphonal
unfolding.
And in the music of this song,
breathed in the quietest place,
let there be renewal
- of all our diverse strengths.
So that you, loved friend, best of us all,
may render your many verses
with vigorous timbre,
sweetened, tightened, true.