Vanity and Value Part I

Meditations by the River

[Sitting on a sandy bank of a river.]

Grain by grain this sand—this life—
falls through my fingers.
the waters, calm,
consistent in their motion,
are impervious to changing times and trends
of what seems is cosmic in proportion
and significance.
Yet here the magnificence is not found
in what is new;
it’s the unchanging,
the ground upon which we build,
fixed laws and constant motion caused
by the Un-caused Cause
since the dawn of time.
And here am I, a grain falling to the ground—
to the countless sands that make one feel insignificant.
I fall into the indiscernible existence
not changed but waiting,
waiting for the day my composition
will undergo the transformation only known
to those whose hope is Him.
Perhaps glass, or gold, or cornelian gem stone
radiant and glorious because of Light
shining through the facets fashioned
by His hands.

Here am I waiting,
waiting for the life beyond the strand
of this existence.

*     *     *     *     *

This is the first installment to a series of posts I have entitled “Vanity and Value.” In the next several posts I’ll be sharing poems that explore the theme of what has lasting value in this life. None of the poems were written to be a part of a series, but there is a certain searching for meaning and value in each of them. This search is that innate desire for substance to fill the futility of our days and their efforts. It’s a search I hope will resonate with you. And if you are a Christian, the answer always comes and brings that substance we so long for as humans– the answer of course is Christ. Yet, these poems didn’t emerge because things were so black and white. They emerged out of storms, sometimes subtle mists of doubt and anxiety, out of questioning, or placing myself into another’s shoes and trying to make sense of things. These poems came from the confusion of life, yet God would always so graciously bring me to the truth.

So join me in this series of poems. Meditate with me on these questions of what is vain and what is valuable.