Worship where you can lest life become
empty earthenware or barren circus rings.
For some it’s a world of watercolour mood:
search for it, hold it fast if you find it.
Where you feel like screaming, do. Sound also
can lift into the void and echo somewhere.
If you need to name it, go ahead — whether
Jesus, Buddha, The Is or God — nature’s a less demanding
deity: although easier to love, she refuses blankly
to answer the questions you ask.
As someone once said, worship as many
as you can, and more will appear.
Personally I’d advise against standing by lakes
with arms raised in hope: more often than not
the deity will have another appointment.
To avoid pain, keep in mind that the name is only
a name; don’t expect it to appear to you in daylight.
But don’t lose hope; ignore warnings of what is
right and wrong: if it keeps you going, believe it.
And whatever happens, don’t stand to watch
if someone else’s life is emptying quietly,
unless they specifically ask you to.
Learn to look inside yourself — the answers
are often there, if incomprehensible.