Altercation
Dear ear, seize and try words on for size. Let
their sounds surprise you with cries of gladness.
Let them roll from the roof of your mouth or shower
down like rain, tap-dancing on a pinged-tin roof.
Let your words never again go forth with sharp
retorts like machine guns shooting off at the mouth
of rivers, echoing for each throbbing head to hear.
Do not fear your words as givers of truth or love
or healing life, but let language bear no sharpened
points that thrust a blade into someone else’s bones.
Record your words carefully, and play them back
with prayerful tones, then hope you will receive
exactly and precisely and, if possible, concisely,
what you say that you, most likely, do believe.
Mary Harwell Sayler‘s bio:
Mary Harwell Sayler began writing poems in childhood but, as an adult, wrote almost everything except poetry! Eventually she placed three dozen books in all genres including poetry and how-to books on poetry and writing. She also maintains the Poetry Editor blog and provides resources for poets and writers on her website. Recently she collected almost all of the prayers in the Bible from many English translations, paraphrased them into contemporary language, and published the Book of Bible Prayers. She then published the prayer book in the King James Version only, the Book of KJV Prayers.