TABLE FOR TWO

She sets a table

For two at Christmas

Though she lives alone

And no other is expected

Maybe her husband or daughter

Or both will come

From beyond

Perhaps the Lord himself

Will fulfil his revelation

And knock on her door today

In a way not done before

To take His place more tangibly

In the kitchen of her soul

She is prepared for the unexpected

Just in case

ISLAND

Autumn will be all but over  
When I return the leaves will have 
Fallen and it will be colder

There is something cleansing 
About leaving, separation  
The cloistering

Take-off lets me let go 
And I don’t remember 
The September air of home

Wholly present to now

It’s the islands that occupy me 
Completely appealing 
Compelling

There’s an island in me
Not remote nor far from land 

An island and a separateness

And as soon as I am aware
That the island is not remote
I know 

That I must journey
To the remote recesses
Of the inner and eternal

CONFIDENCE

With the first 

Confidence of a child

No baggage yet

To speak of and still

Not named

No reason to be afraid

Now is where he lives

Right now there is

Nothing else

The heaving sea

Surging with trechery

Magnificent in its moment

Dreadful

Absolutely admirable

Co-operate

Go with it

Eyes vigilant

Trained on the destination

Riding it mastering

The fear of it

Trembling to the thrill

Doing what you cannot

Delving into resources

Not known until tried

I AM (Mystery)

I scrabble for words 

To give expression

Of who I am

The what and the how

Of this life

But all the tongues

Of the world would not

Speak it in its fullness

I am mystery

Unfathomable even

To myself

The root and mood

Are sung in songs

Of outer space

On hot August nights

Soul tugged upward

To the orbit of its belonging

My home ever a temporary

Dwelling place

An emptiness deep

That clings tenaciously

Daring me to let go

Knowing that I will not

That I am chosen for it

And I have chosen

The infinity of whom

It speaks and in whom

I am mirrored

Johnny Carty 70th Mass

Johnny Carty Mass

SNOW ON WINTER WATER

Snow on winter water
White on white surf tumbles

Frothing
Unbearable cold

Laughing children
Do not mind

Their voices rising
Over thunder

While Rufus follows
Every stranger
Seeking out the playful