kneeling

Rijn van, Rembrandt
1606-1669
Apostle Peter Kneeling
1631
oil on canvas
59x49cm
Private Collection

~*~*~*~*~

Moments of great calm,
Kneeling before an altar
Of wood in a stone church
In summer, waiting for the God
to speak; the air a staircase
For silence; the sun's light
Ringing me, as though I acted
A great role. And the audiences
Still; all that close throng
Of spirits waiting, as I,
For the message.
Prompt me, God;
But not yet. When I speak,
Though it be you who speak
Through me, something is lost.
The meaning is in the waiting.

~~R.S. Thomas