It is so important to say some things
in just the perfect way
and yet perfection is so rarely within our reach.

We teach, we train, we practice
over and over again
and yet so often, see our landings
fall a bit short of the mark.

We live in a world of darkness and light;
day and night sometimes bleed into one another
and we hope for the other,
seeking some sort of comfort.

On the day after
my daughter’s second son was born,
my second son’s wife miscarried

and now we all carry this mingling
of joy and sorrow,
sadness and gladness.

On this bright day,
a rousing sun shines
across the snow,
striking shadows from the cedars
and an intense reflection
from the frozen burnish of ice on the road.

We walk in the midst
of atrocity and generosity,
kindness and cruelty,
heartache and celebration.

We may choose our focus,
train our hearts for gratitude,
and return good for rudeness,
but all of this is life,
life amidst blinding light and bruising cold.

H. Arnett
12/12/13