POETRY

Eminent Domain Once again, does and a buck from the nearby woods have jumped over our fence, raided our garden, nibbled on our fresh greens. Small payment for living beside them, leasing their turf. In the Court of Appeals, theirs is the right of domain -- Fr. Walter Bado, SJ    Lexington, Ky.

Shekinah 33 A.D. Without a warning howl she burst upon them:      praying men,      silent women,      playing children, crashed into the old room shaking its wood and stone. She came with pollen from the desert, salt from the sea, pulling their hair, stirring their blood. Like wine, she loosened their tongues to babble meaning to the deaf. People heard. A fetus of hope kicked within the womb of destiny. -- Tom Keene    San Antonio

Nighttime in Autumn There has been      such yellow light, Ash trees spilling over With autumn air -- It hurts to see, Knowing      the rowdy wind Will strip them clean Like the flick of a switch Leaving us in the dark,      Still hungry. -- Sr.Eileen Haugh, OSF    Eyota, Minn.

Note to poets: Short lines preferred. Poetry is published in a newspaper column only 35 characters wide, counting punctuation and spaces. Submit poems to Poetry, NCR, PO Box 411009, Kansas City MO 64141-1009, or e-mail at poetry@ncronline.org.

National Catholic Reporter, November 16, 2007