Sorrow In the Midst of Joy

In the midst of joy,
I bear many sorrows.

For the perfection
Of the Trinity’s All Holy
Work of Love,
I place my longing,
My yearning,
Next to your perfect sorrow.

May my cries
Pierce your Immaculate Heart,
O Holy Mother,
As you behold your Son,
In His Dying.

What good can come of sorrow?
You, Queen Mother,
Who sit enthroned
Beside His throne,
Sharing the sweetness
Of Love’s fulfillment,
Know,
And count it all joy.

The One Son,
The One Christ,
Bears Mankind,
As He bore the Cross.
Savor the shed tears
And offer them,
As you did your own.

I await the morning,
The bright dawning
Of Love’s true laughter.

©2013 Joann Nelander
All rights reserved

Awakening

You stretch before me
In wondrous expanses.
Where are your limits, O Lord?
Where the measure
That contains Your domain?

The ethereal sky,
Hugging the mountains,
Kissing earth,
And spilling love across its plains,
Proclaims a God of beauty.

Hidden,yet revealed,
In the minuscule and mighty,
You peer from clouds
That radiate streams of Your glory.

You walk the waters,
Stride across mountains,
Blow like desert sands,
Seamlessly knitting terrain,
Texture, color, and contour
In organic harmony,
To announce Your Presence.

A world of darkness
Awakens each morning,
From its chrysalis,
As hope and promise courts
The sons and daughters of Man.

Quarried, cut and polished,
A darkened crystal,
Receives Your Light.
The soul of Man,
Focuses Your splendor,
And by grace,
You shine out in creations’ purpose.

Your Just Sun, O Father,
Crosses the great divide,
To shine on a “no one”,
And “no people”
To stretch before the angels
The measure of Your Mercy.

Copyright 2014 Joann Nelander

Joann Nelander
lionessblog.com