Poem: SEEING IS BELIEVING?

If seeing is believing --how do we see beyond
mountain ranges of cloud --in mountainless
-----landscapes
beyond sailing ships sinking below the horizon
into the depths? --Our language shimmies
awkwardly ignoring our knowledge
of receding glaciers & rising suns

We believe what we do not at first understand
The meaning of crimson creeping across
the extent of a leaf --the depth of turquoise
in a mountain lake --Seeing is believing
they say --although we know
colour happens within our perception

Were John’s senses sufficient to comprehend
what he saw --when he saw the One who was
& is --& is to come --surrounded
by seven lampstands --holding a fistful of stars?
Was his vision a poem within living experience
granting a depth we wouldn’t otherwise know?

Believing is seeing --such as when the outline
of the house you know is there materializes
from the snowstorm’s depths to save your life
An act of prayer will contribute to healing
they say --giving substance to things hoped for
though unseen as through frosted glass

(This poem first appeared in Crux)