Contributor Series 5: Dramatis Personae
The Voice of God
By Sandra Forte-Nickenig
By Sandra Forte-Nickenig
When God speaks I hear
Miriam and her timbrels
and the roar of bearded patriarchs
waiting for Moses to descend Mt. Sinai.
When Jesus speaks I hear
a chorus of disciples
praising his name while
Jezebel pursues forgiveness.
When Allah speaks I hear
sheepherders praying in the desert
through the shaft of blinding light
seeking water for a parched soul.
When Buddha speaks I hear
the murmur of a hymn
and the faint plashing in the pool
where lotus blossoms promise peace.
When the Great Spirit speaks I hear
the bones of my ancestors
beating a tom-tom as their faces
flash in a star-filled sky.
When Mother Earth speaks I hear
a cascading waterfall and
I dance through whispering meadows
in search of a lover.
When my Higher Power speaks I hear
the voices of friends
who sit in a circle and laugh
at the ironies of reality.
Yet if truth be told,
all gods sound remarkably like
the voice of a Jewish woman searching
to discover the mystery of the universe.
Sandra Forte-Nickenig’s poetry appeared at vox poetica in 2009. Her most recent poem, September Morn, was published in September 2009.
Dear Sandra, You speak for many of us, in a wise, strong voice which warms the heart.