So This Is Dying

* Spirit Of Jesus pray for me
* Luke, Holy Church pray for me
* Saints pray for me
*  Dedicated to #GoodFriday

+-----So This Is Dying: The Death Of God; Jesus' Last Thoughts On The Cross 

Last night, above
condescending rancor
of soldiers outside guarding
my dank, musty cell- Lot
hunkered inside his house in
Sodom - the crying of wolves. Their
howls apocalyptic, as if fire was
falling on them from the sky. And now
I swear this darkness enveloping,
the clouds charred, the crowds' jeers,
feels like God's wrath, like smoke
billowing from Hephaestus's forge that
birthed the knife for Brutus to kill
Julius Caesar. As well these nails
in my hand bleeding. Burning. My whole
body hurts. My soul is dying, I know.   

------Luke 23:44-49
It was now about noon, and darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon, for the sun stopped shining. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two. Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” When he had said this, he breathed his last. The centurion, seeing what had happened, praised God and said, “Surely this was a righteous man.” When all the people who had gathered to witness this sight saw what took place, they beat their breasts and went away. But all those who knew him, including the women who had followed him from Galilee, stood at a distance, watching these things.

Taylor Swift and Tony Conti: Samuel And Saul In 2018 #taylordatetony

* Spirit Of Jesus pray for me
* Samuel, Holy Church pray for me
* Saints pray for me
*  Dedicated to #taylordatetony #wcw #IamSaul

+-----Taylor Swift and Tony Conti: Samuel And Saul In 2018

Taylor, my heart is a man
of Benjamin, the son of Kish
keen, eager, like an eagle hunting,
seeking romance like his father’s
donkeys lost. Traversing through
girls’ dating refusals like towns
bucolic: Ephraim, Shalisha, Zuph,
fretful as if now unsure of the way back
home (to happiness). But babes,
your beautiful soul like esoteric
wisdom of a Seer. Your smile
like choice meat set before an
 honored guest, your two blue
eyes like a feast in my honor in a high place.
If you took me to Starbucks, a flask
of olive oil poured, anointing my head.
If we kissed, a procession of prophets
with lyres, timbrels, pipes, harps
at Gibeah celebrating. The donkeys
recovered; Heralding me as
Israel’s King (your boyfriend). Saul.

------1 Samuel 10:1-8
Then Samuel took a flask of olive oil and poured it on Saul’s head and kissed him, saying, “Has not the Lord anointed you ruler over his inheritance? When you leave me today, you will meet two men near Rachel’s tomb, at Zelzah on the border of Benjamin. They will say to you, ‘The donkeys you set out to look for have been found. And now your father has stopped thinking about them and is worried about you. He is asking, “What shall I do about my son?”’ “Then you will go on from there until you reach the great tree of Tabor. Three men going up to worship God at Bethel will meet you there. One will be carrying three young goats, another three loaves of bread, and another a skin of wine. They will greet you and offer you two loaves of bread, which you will accept from them. “After that you will go to Gibeah of God, where there is a Philistine outpost. As you approach the town, you will meet a procession of prophets coming down from the high place with lyres, timbrels, pipes and harps being played before them, and they will be prophesying. The Spirit of the Lord will come powerfully upon you, and you will prophesy with them; and you will be changed into a different person. Once these signs are fulfilled, do whatever your hand finds to do, for God is with you. “Go down ahead of me to Gilgal. I will surely come down to you to sacrifice burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, but you must wait seven days until I come to you and tell you what you are to do.”

A Courtyard Paradise

* Spirit Of Jesus pray for me
* Luke, Holy Church pray for me
* Saints pray for me
*  Dedicated to #IamPeter

+-----A Courtyard Paradise; Peter's Thoughts After Betraying Jesus, Weeping 

                              I know the trepidation
of Adam, Eve now. Tying leaves
together to fashion clothing,
wisps of branches at the seams,
trembling. Birds scattering, clouds
blackened at footsteps of God nearing.
Concerned. His gaze like
fire in the Lake of Reprobates
kindled by fallen angels’ wings.
Raging. This courtyard blaze, crackling
like a Snake’s tongue recoiled, Satan
snickering. I have never felt more alone…
I have met the pure eyes of the savior
I denied, of one betrayed. Paradise Lost. 

------Luke 22:54-62
Then seizing him, they led him away and took him into the house of the high priest. Peter followed at a distance. And when some there had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and had sat down together, Peter sat down with them. A servant girl saw him seated there in the firelight. She looked closely at him and said, “This man was with him.” But he denied it. “Woman, I don’t know him,” he said. A little later someone else saw him and said, “You also are one of them.” “Man, I am not!” Peter replied. About an hour later another asserted, “Certainly this fellow was with him, for he is a Galilean.” Peter replied, “Man, I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Just as he was speaking, the rooster crowed. The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him: “Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three times.” And he went outside and wept bitterly.

Cheers To Eternity

* Spirit Of Jesus pray for me
* Matthew, Holy Church pray for me
* Saints pray for me
*  Dedicated to #thelastsupper

+-----Cheers To Eternity; Jesus' Thoughts At The Last Supper

As a boy, I recall the Roman
and Greek youths, tales of Heracles
drinking ambrosia, nectar on
their lips, glowing. Exclaiming immortality.
A life, like his, Olympian. On Zeus's
bosom asleep. And now this -bread, wine,
lamb for my disciples, a nervous Passover.
Candles in the upper room as in
temples of gods, like the fire-pillar
leading Moses to Sinai from Pharaoh.
I like to think, this too, with singing, 
make us immortals-My flesh, blood given
to these people I love. So their sins
can be forgiven. All of us in Eden tomorrow.

------Matthew 26:17-30
On the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Where do you want us to make preparations for you to eat the Passover?” He replied, “Go into the city to a certain man and tell him, ‘The Teacher says: My appointed time is near. I am going to celebrate the Passover with my disciples at your house.’” So the disciples did as Jesus had directed them and prepared the Passover. When evening came, Jesus was reclining at the table with the Twelve. And while they were eating, he said, “Truly I tell you, one of you will betray me.” They were very sad and began to say to him one after the other, “Surely you don’t mean me, Lord?” Jesus replied, “The one who has dipped his hand into the bowl with me will betray me. The Son of Man will go just as it is written about him. But woe to that man who betrays the Son of Man! It would be better for him if he had not been born.” Then Judas, the one who would betray him, said, “Surely you don’t mean me, Rabbi?” Jesus answered, “You have said so.” While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is my body.”
Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. I tell you, I will not drink from this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.” When they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.

The Call Of Taylor Swift To Tony Conti; The Date Making A Prophet #taylordatetony

* Spirit Of Jesus pray for me
* Samuel, Holy Church pray for me
* Saints pray for me
*  Dedicated to #taylordatetony #wcw #taylorswift

+-----The Call Of Taylor Swift To Tony Conti; The Date Making A Prophet

Taylor, my heart is a boy
lying down lonely, feigning sleep,
his arms wrapped about his bent
knees in romance’s tabernacle. Beneath
the Ark of Hope. Dating’s word
rare, due to my many failed
attempts at asking girls out. But babes,
your smile ennobling, your voice
like divine purpose, your lips mountains
that house angels in clefts of rock.
If you took me to Starbucks, suddenly
a voice crying out “Tony! Tony!” (Samuel!
Samuel!) If you kissed me, my soul
enthused exclaiming “Here I am!” And
our gazing over coffee: my devoted
heart boasting: “Speak, for your
servant is listening”, then you
blessing me with soothing words.
Making me your boyfriend, like a prophet.

------1 Samuel 3:1-11
The boy Samuel ministered before the Lord under Eli. In those days the word of the Lord was rare; there were not many visions. One night Eli, whose eyes were becoming so weak that he could barely see, was lying down in his usual place. The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the house of the Lord, where the ark of God was. Then the Lord called Samuel. Samuel answered, “Here I am.” And he ran to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.” But Eli said, “I did not call; go back and lie down.” So he went and lay down. Again the Lord called, “Samuel!” And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.” “My son,” Eli said, “I did not call; go back and lie down.” Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord: The word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him. A third time the Lord called, “Samuel!” And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.” Then Eli realized that the Lord was calling the boy. So Eli told Samuel, “Go and lie down, and if he calls you, say, ‘Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place. The Lord came and stood there, calling as at the other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” Then Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.” And the Lord said to Samuel: “See, I am about to do something in Israel that will make the ears of everyone who hears about it tingle.

A Drifter Mom and Her Son In Beersheba

* Spirit Of Jesus pray for me
* Abraham, Moses, Holy Church pray for me
* Saints pray for me
*  Dedicated to #IamHagar

+-----A Drifter Mom and Her Son In Beersheba; The Thoughts Of Hagar While Sobbing In The Desert 

When I was a girl in Egypt,
I remember tutelage of
temple priests; On valor upon death,
on requisite dignity for a bridge
for the soul to wade from the body
to the Nile Delta (with Osiris).
And now I see temptation’s canyon; 
skulking demons or tumbleweeds wafting,
...or both in Beersheba. I struggle
with murderous opining –
my mistress’s scorn, my “lover”
Abram’s inheritance of food barely,
a water skin. Left alone to withstand the
sun, scorching sands with my boy
in the desert. If we die here, may
we both hear currents rushing, soon.

------Genesis 21:14-21
Early the next morning Abraham took some food and a skin of water and gave them to Hagar. He set them on her shoulders and then sent her off with the boy. She went on her way and wandered in the Desert of Beersheba. When the water in the skin was gone, she put the boy under one of the bushes. Then she went off and sat down about a bowshot away, for she thought, “I cannot watch the boy die.” And as she sat there, she began to sob. God heard the boy crying, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “What is the matter, Hagar? Do not be afraid; God has heard the boy crying as he lies there. Lift the boy up and take him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation.” Then God opened her eyes and she saw a well of water. So she went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink. God was with the boy as he grew up. He lived in the desert and became an archer. While he was living in the Desert of Paran, his mother got a wife for him from Egypt.

Alexandra Daddario In Tony Conti's Desert Place #TonyandAlexandra

* Spirit Of Jesus pray for me
* Abraham, Moses, Holy Church pray for me
* Saints pray for me
*  Dedicated to #TonyandAlexandra

+-----Alexandra Daddario In Tony Conti's Desert Place 

Alexandra, my heart is Hagar,
young mother, a slave (to
rejection)...a concubine of Egypt
with child shunned, wandering in
Beersheba's trackless dateless-desert.
My loneliness, her mistress, sneering
behind singleness's tent door slit. And
my faith in love but food and a skin
of water across my shoulders
dwindling. My soul crying, my
joy-child starving beneath
a bush. But babes, your blue eyes
like a cherub's, like an oasis
of two lakes of eternal life, your voice
celestial, advising me not to fear.
If we kissed, like a miraculous well of
fresh water manifesting to quench
my soul, parched. My son'd grow to
be an archer, healthy. Ishmael in the
desert of Paran, for lovers.

------Genesis 21:14-21
Early the next morning Abraham took some food and a skin of water and gave them to Hagar. He set them on her shoulders and then sent her off with the boy. She went on her way and wandered in the Desert of Beersheba. When the water in the skin was gone, she put the boy under one of the bushes. Then she went off and sat down about a bowshot away, for she thought, “I cannot watch the boy die.” And as she sat there, she began to sob. God heard the boy crying, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “What is the matter, Hagar? Do not be afraid; God has heard the boy crying as he lies there. Lift the boy up and take him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation.” Then God opened her eyes and she saw a well of water. So she went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink. God was with the boy as he grew up. He lived in the desert and became an archer. While he was living in the Desert of Paran, his mother got a wife for him from Egypt.