The Living Need the Dying
M. Justin Wainscott, 2009
The living need the dying,
Not so much as a reminder of death,
But as a reminder of life.
Maternity
M. Justin Wainscott, 2009
How wonderfully marvelous
(Yet altogether natural)
Has been the transformation
Of my wife into motherhood.
It’s amazing how quickly
She mastered the mundane
Matters of maternity
And turned them into something
Truly beautiful to behold.
I sometimes pause
(Without her knowledge)
And listen in
As she reads or sings
To our daughter.
I’m tempted to cry,
But I don’t –
Because my smiling
Prevents it.
Dreams in D Minor
M. Justin Wainscott, 2009
In my dreams, I am a musician.
Not a great one, but an able one.
I play with skill and grace,
But I wouldn’t overly impress you.
I’m good enough to accompany
The songs in my head, and I can
Get by with reading simple music,
But that’s about the extent of my ability.
Yet how my feet dance on the pedals
And my fingers float across the keys
When I play the beautiful pipe organ
In the grand cathedral of my mind.
The sounds of Bach which bellow forth
Make sleeping worth the while.
But unfortunately I’m awake now,
And my fingers and feet are as awkward
As they ever were (and always will be).
Strangely Beautiful Grace
M. Justin Wainscott, 2009
Most of the time,
A meal is just a meal.
It satisfies the appetite.
And there’s nothing wrong with that.
But on rare occasions,
It is so much more.
Not because of the food,
But because of something else –
Because of the person
Sitting across from you,
And the conversation that ensues.
I had such a meal today.
The food – cheap.
The atmosphere – lacking.
But the company, the conversation –
Like fine wine that
Is sipped and savored;
To waste or rush
A single word
Would have been shameful,
Would have been inconsiderate.
It’s not that we solved
The problems of the world;
We didn’t even solve our own
Plethora of problems.
But we shared life –
Pains, struggles, joys –
And there was something
Strangely beautiful about it.
Grace seems to work that way.
It’s beautiful but strangely so,
Like a messy masterpiece.
