sanctuary – a poem by Sister Lou Ella Hickman

sanctuary 

as i sit meditating with trees
i know they will whisper nothing	
for they have already found what i seek
they will let the wind speak for itself
and the sky will invite me again into its silence
such is the turning earth
as the sun ribbons its way through these woods
this place
the mystery whose flesh is sacred 
with soil and bark and leaves
and fur and wing
the mystery of all things wild
the mystery i sit with 
                        sitting with the trees
		
		
		

Sister Lou Ella Hickman, OVISS, is a former teacher and librarian whose writings have appeared in numerous magazines and anthologies. Press 53 published her first book of poetry in 2015 entitled she: robed and wordless and her second, Writing the Stars, 2024. She was nominated for the Pushcart Prize in 2017 and in 2020. James Lee III composed “Chavah’s Daughters Speak” for a concert held on May 11, 2021, at 92Y in New York City for five poems from her book. Another concert was held in Cleveland, Ohio on March 28, 2023, sponsored by the Cleveland Chamber Music Society.