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Four Poems by Romaine Washington: "The Joy of Elohim", "Inseparable", "The

Cross

The Joy of Elohim

Everything I see is You

And everything I don’t see is You.

You are the yellow eye of joy that lights my day

In the middle of mind and sky,

A smile so full it spills out lips in Hallelujah laughter.

You are as old as oxygen

And as fresh as the last gulp of breath in Amen.

You are the march and rhythm of time and order

And the miracles that turn it all upside down.

You are the stillness of water,

The trickle of peace running down my spine,

The bond of red in veins.

You are the alchemy of words vibrating through air

Sound and meaning evolving into substance.

You are the I Love You

That inspires the creation of a new universe.

I am your bride

And You cover me with Your life.

Inseparable

He knows the lines in my palms

And the curve in my fingertips

He knows the kink and pop of each strand of hair,

Has counted each lash of my eyes.

And my smile,

He knows the breadth thereof

And why thereof,

The gloss and shine,

The varied hues of white that dance in light,

And the quietness of my lips concealing secrets.

My secrets,

He knows them all.

Breath by breath – thought by thought

He has examined them before they ever were.

He knew it would be,

Has whispered his forgiveness into my lungs.

I am breathing Him in,

Spirited Holy I wrap myself up

In His word.

In the beginning

Was the word

Was with God

Was God,

His word upon word

I wrap myself up,

Layer upon layer

There is no peeling Him off.

We are inseparable,

My God and I.

He knew me

Before I ever was,

Your words were found

And I did eat them.

You know just what to feed me Lord.

You know the hunger

Before I feel the pang.

You have the quench

Before I feel the thirst.

You are the answer

Before the questions ever is.

You

The I am that I am

Before I

Ever was.

You.

Jeremiah 15:16, John 1:1

The Blessing of a New Day

(El Shaddai)

I woke up this morning

With the sky

Above my head

And the earth

Beneath my feet

And this may not

Sound like much call for gratitude

But just as the person

Who woke up today

With the earth above his head

And the sky beneath his feet

And you see what I mean.

You see what I mean.

I woke up this morning,

Recognized the sun,

Got hot – broke sweat

Just from thinking about you

Being clothed in yellow

And walking in naked light.

And when the sun sweetly coats my skin

Like hot syrup on pancakes

It is all I can do

To breath the sweet scent of maple

Permeating everything around me.

This is the day the Lord has made

And coffee is not only

The color of my skin

But the taste on my tongue,

The rush through veins

Opening my eyes and ears

Like the alarm clock of thunder.

The sound of rain

Is the sound

Of a million liquid hand clapping,

My two join in gratitude.

And it may not sound like much to you

But the trees and the wind are making ovations

Everywhere

In this awakening ritual of senses

In this goo

Good morning

Of thanks.

I will rejoice

And be glad.

This is the day the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it. -Psalm 118:24

I Wait

while my hands are yet empty

and echo

with tantrum and rage,

my voice bellows

into sky hollow

blue ripples,

clouds shred as I wait

for the return

of the sound of His voice,

patience is all

but a day short

of answer.

I wait for an answer

from Him whose whisper sings

as still as dust on the grave,

I settle as still,

as dust on the grave,

quiet enough to hear Him whisper.

hear Him whisper like the quiet

before an earthquake

moving mountains.

He moves mountains with answers

as quick and strong as the sun

rising in His strength.

on His strength – I wait.

through the tremor and quiver – I wait.

through the grey dusk yawn – I wait.

for the yellow ray brilliance – I wait.

for my answer – I wait.

in His hand – I wait.

for my times are in His hand,

my waiting is in His hand,

I am in His hand, as I wait.

-Judges 5:31 But let those who love Him be like the sun when it comes out in full strength.

- Isaiah 40:31 But those that wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles,

they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.

 
Romaine Washington

Romaine Washington M.Ed. is a certificated high school teacher in California. She is the author of a collection of poems “Sirens in Her Belly,” which was placed on BET’s top 12 must-read list of books for 2016 by editor, Britt Middleton. She is in the process of completing common core lesson plans to accompany the book, which has been adopted by school districts in Southern California.

She has been published in a variety of periodicals and journals as well as reading in a variety of venues and being an active member in the local poetry community.

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