On a quiet afternoon
when other sounds hush
and even the birds seem to be napping,
I sit and listen to the calm tick
of the dining room clock,
and I realize that I need
some faithful thing
to assure me,
to gentle me,
to strengthen me,
something like this steady click
that goes on measuring time
whether I hear it or not.
It’s a faithful thing
like winter turning to spring,
like the sunrise in the eastern sky,
like the moon waxing and waning.
In life’s uncertainty,
the scramble of tasks,
the unknown and unknowable,
I need this pause,
this listening,
this sensing and settling.
I need to know
that the moon has been crossing the heavens
since long before I was born
and will be crossing the heavens still,
long after I’m gone.
And while the clock in the dining room
may go silent some day,
for now, it too
is a faithful thing
evenly measuring time,
and I need some faithful thing—
sun, moon, wind, rain, trees,
even this clock—
I need some faithful thing
to be my gladness,
my contentment.
In the midst of all that’s temporary,
I need some faithful thing
to remind me of
eternity.
-kh-

Nurture peace, cultivate kindness, and carry the calm.

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Text and photos © Karyn Henley 2025. All rights reserved.