by Google Images

Lament (A Psalm)

I come in holy boldness, great act of faith,
Risk of capsizing the brazier of my heart—
A hot spark, full of storm, spinning-axel,
Grinding-gears, headlights full, horn held
Down, fingers across a blackboard, pulling
At a thread, a door slamming, swelling silence,
Heckling crowd, clenched fist, caged animal,
Arched back, teeth-bared, howling—no
One is there. Where are you, desert wind—
Father of exposed places, disappearing act,
Breath of breathes, lonely road, wind swept
Beach, deflated boast, scattered leaves, ebbing
Tide, evening sun—what’s left to say—nothing
More, but gathering clouds and falling rain.

Jonathan Hoskin lives in Auckland, where he works for Laidlaw College. His work has appeared in Time of Singing, Habits of the Heart, Ecce Homo, and Stories, an anthology that looks at faith journeys of members of St Paul's Anglican Church, Symonds Street.