Standing with pen in hand, at a crossroads with Sarah
'I have never separated poetry from prayer.' Derek Walcott
I was deep into this project of writing poems inspired by Sarah when a dream prompted me to write in the form of a prayer. “Begin with the setting,” the dream instructed.
At the time, I had been wondering what it would have been like to stand, as Sarah stood, at the crossroads between the spirituality of her ancestors and that of the emerging monotheism that she and her husband, Abraham, were discovering.
So that was the ground on which I stood as I followed my dream-assignment.
I imagined what might have been lost, and what might have been gained when Sarah and Abraham moved into new territory, both literally and spiritually, as they traveled farther and farther from home. With each step and with each mile, they were journeying away from familiar landscapes, family, and customs. They were also moving from an earth-based religion where they worshipped in the temples of the moon and sacred groves toward a more abstract, mysterious, and singular deity.
Like Sarah and Abraham in ancient times, I (and we) are standing at a crossroads again.
Or maybe we’ve been lingering at the intersection of conflicting worldviews ever since.
When I knock wood to keep bad outcomes at bay, I’m revisiting the world they inhabited, when trees were upright goddesses rooted in the soil who could be tapped for protection and wisdom. And when I refer to Mother Nature, my words are markers that memorialize a time when the earth’s gifts of fertility and abundance were embodied by a female deity.
And yet, the Oneness we call God is still my theological North Star.
So here I stand with you at the crossroads grappling with ancient and evolving understandings of faith, home, land, and ancestry.
Whether any of us can cite Sarah, Abraham, and Hagar’s story chapter and verse, or not, their narrative flows like a mythic river beneath our feet; it has fed the growth of the laws, assumptions, and artistic expressions that are as pervasive as air.
Ancient stories root us (consciously or not) in traditional beliefs even as contemporary times demand that we forge new paths forward.
Today’s poem, which was sparked by my dream, is a conversation between two voices at a crossroads.
It is written in the form of a traditional prayer interwoven with an improvised one.
The first is The Sh’ma, the watchword of the Jewish faith, and a prayer that proclaims God’s oneness.
The second is an answering voice that remembers a time when the Earth was honored as Holy and as Mother.
I recently shared my dream-inspired poem and a writing prompt on Ritualwell, where each week another poet or liturgist offers a poem and a creative prompt to bring people together in a circle of comfort and care in these troubling times.1
Listen to today’s poem, then I hope you’ll use the prompt I offer to write one of your own.
Your turn to write
“I have never separated poetry from prayer.” Derek Walcott, Poet
Take some time with your journal or notebook and write as if it is a sacred act. You might write in the form of a prayer, blessing, or plea to the Universe or the Unknown.
Or write between the lines of a prayer, blessing, or verse you know by heart. Let your words be in conversation with, in argument with, or in contemplation with it.
Or, simply let the words flow, and question, proclaim, or pray with your pen.
Write with me
👩🏻💻 Are you curious about how to use poetic forms to reimagine Sarah’s story (or that of any of the biblical Matriarchs)?
📝 Want to learn a new poetic form, just for the fun of it?
🙋🏻♀️ Join me and find your place in the ancient texts.
In this upcoming workshop, I’ll share some of the poetic forms and techniques I’ve been using to unearth the feminine wisdom in Genesis. Everyone is welcome, no matter your faith tradition, experience with poetry, or knowledge of Sarah’s story.
In this 4-week course, we will learn how reclaiming the stories of Sarah and the Hebrew matriarchs through poetic writing can empower us to know ourselves more fully—and access the gifts of wisdom, healing, and joy that are our universal birthright.
I first shared “The Word is Wood” along with more about the trees in Sarah’s Story here:
I’m dreaming with you,
