Returning late from Tonbridge on the train

The taxi dropped me, sped off, and I stood

Alone beneath the silent autumn sky's

Pinpoint brightness stretched out beyond the woods.

Orion smiled, Auriga curved in joy,

Taurus galloped on towards his foe,

Castor, Pollux, the clustered Pleiades,

Sang and circled, while transfixed below

I wondered why this glory of the night

Seemed just for me, as if the universe

At this brief point in time, was mine alone

And nothing could destroy nor doubt reverse

            The truth I felt so deep within my heart

            That I was loved and love will ne'er depart.

Brian Hick October 2014

©copyright Sally Hick 3.11.25

 1396

I know, and do not worry how I know,

That love outlasts, out shines outflanks them all.

Regardless of the cataracts that fall

Upon us and the world's demonic glow,

Love survives, love overcomes, love grows,

Love bumbles on, love sticks around, love grafts,

Love undermines all wickedness, love laughs,

Love waits until the rest have failed, love knows;

There's nothing that outlasts love's patient joy -

Knowing that eternity is real -

No power on earth has power enough to steal

The truth that love itself is never coy

Faced with barbarity, insult and shame

Love smiles, and looks all evil in the eye

Knowing that true love can never die

For love is ready to accept the blame.

Brian Hick September 2014

©copyright Sally Hick 10.10.25

 1385

Shanklin - July 14

The tide has turned and here beyond the waves

A line of sand lies warming in the sun.

Cool on my feet, it could be the seabed

Full fathom five and far below where fishes

Choose the height or depth at which they swim

Move freely in between, while I am bound

To squat close to the all too solid earth.

I stand amid the waves but my feet drift

And sink as sand dissolves,

Pebbles shifting with the morning tide.

While all above is stable in the breeze

And statue-like I seem to be unmoved

Everything below the water's edge

Drifts out of focus and the clarity

Of air and sun is dissipated, until

All dissolves into a single whole,

Translucent, changing, yet more unified

Than the stark contrasts of the air-born world.

Ever-shifting, always out of reach,

If I sense you, you are gone before

I can pin you down,

And eve now, seventy years on,

You're still elusive and the simple faith

I hoped would come with age

Seems further away than ever - even though

I sought you in the charismatic heights,

Dived into the depths of liturgy,

Walked pilgrimages, sought the shrines of saints -

All helped, but did not last,

For while I knew you lay behind them all

The waters never cleared to let me see

A permanence, a rock on which to stand;

Only the shifting sands which seems to say

Give in, let go, there is no other way.

Brian Hick July 2014

©copyright Sally Hick 19.9.25

 1369

I will seek you where I know you'll be

Down at the water's edge, beside the sea,

Upon the cliff top, where the morning breeze

Cools the air and drifts towards the trees

Which rest in blossom and your spring's new green

Before summer's joy and those unseen,

Unnoticed moments of continuing life

Inevitably unfolding without strife.

Each tiny atom, or the eternal round,

Reflecting all that is, and all I've found

Searching for you, until you found me,

Touched my heart and set my spirit free;

And here I am, surrounded by your love,

From deep in ocean's depth to heaven above.

Brian Hick July 2014

©copyright Sally Hick 16.8.25

 1368

Alpha & Omega

I know you love the silence and the word that can't be heard

That slipping into stillness to rise up, like a bird

Circling the hill tops, safe at the edge of thought,

Where casual adversity melts off, as the fraught

And fractious din of endless conversations disappear

Into the ocean far below or up into the air

Which effortlessly cradles me until I reach the place

Where all barriers lie broken and we are face to face.

Here is where my heart is, here I long to be,

The transforming awareness that there's only you and me

And, when you release me, return me to my work,

No matter what the problem, the upsets that may lurk

To trip me or dissuade me from following the way,

I'll always have the silence you gave to me today,

This wordless wild conviction of overflowing love

From deep below the ocean to the heavens far above.

Love does nto need explaining, love does not make demands

Love exists in giving, in meeting the commands

Of gentle expectations, to succour and relieve,

To laugh with those rejoicing, to grieve with those who grieve;

Love can never censure, love does not complain

Love flows through me unceasing its influence the same

As when I first encountered its touch upon my heart

And knew there was no turning back, no chance that we might part.

And now within this silence, I sense your gentle voice,

A whisper in the tree-tops, a calling to rejoice

In all you have created, all that comes to me,

All that has departed, all that will ever be,

For there is no beginning, as there will be no end,

No time, no space, no limits, no boundaries to offend,

No need for forgiveness, no need to lose or win,

For you, and you alone, are where I end and I begin.

Brian Hick July 2014

©copyright Sally Hick 13.8 25

 1294

Of course you're there but I will still wait

Until you tell me what I have to do,

Like some old prophet searching for the bait

To reel in converts daily, two by two.

Your silence in this noise of summer days

Rests on my heart, knowing you're aware

I'm eager to give more than simple praise

And worship, if you need me to share

The joy that comes from following the Way

The joy I feel in your abiding love

The joy that never fails or says me nay

The joy that floods like sunlight from above.

            Your silence speaks more life than life can bring

            Turning bleak winter to eternal spring.

Brian Hick July 2013

©copyright Sally Hick 14.7.25

 1284

Ludlow Psalm

I cannot see the river far below

But I can hear it tumbling on the weir.

Amid the tree, rough walls and ivy cheer

The darkening trunks, and small spring flowers grow

In brief profusion.  Here, close to the keep,

The battled walls and greying ramparts rise

From banks of rain-washed grasses to thin skies

Of slowly drifting clouds, pointing toward sleep.

Between recitals, before the evening meal,

I have these moments to myself - no, no,

Not to myself, for you are here, and so

Each sight, each sound, is shared, become more rea;

For knowing you are always here with me

Transforms each moment to eternity.

Brian Hick May 2013

©copyright Sally Hick 20.6.25

 1278

Feed my sheep; so that's what Peter did.

No time to worry over heresy,

Nor set down creeds; just do as he was bid.

Feed my sheep.

But we live beside a different sea,

Muddied by long centuries of pain,

Stark disillusion, death and apathy,

Where faith becomes a weapon for the vain,

Crushing hope, disabling empathy,

Until Love is sewered with the rain,

Feed my sheep.

Brian Hick June 2013

©copyright Sally Hick 6.6.25

 1355

Southbank 29.3.14

Where are you in all this din -

            All the crowds who push and shove

            No time for manners, less for love -

No chance to see where we begin

To sense that life is more than speed

            More than early morning meetings,

            Faster food, half-hearted greetings,

More than work, the grasp, the greed.

Yet, if you are ever present,

            Ever wakeful at my side,

            I don't need the turning tide,

The gentle dawn or midnight's crescent,

To rekindle thoughts of praise,

            To illuminate my day

            And set me back upon the Way

For, even in chaos, you raise

My soul, to know that you are here,

            Within the cities beating heart,

            In every building, every part,

As close as whispered bedtime prayer.

Brian Hick 29.3.14

©copyright Sally Hick 31.5.25

 1271

At a funeral

What am I doing here? No, don't laugh,

Although I wouldn't blame you if you did.

Ninety minutes on, I'm none the wiser

And all the endless verbiage could not rid

The doubts which bubble up and make me dread

The platitudes, the clichés and the Kant

Washing around this refuge for the dead

Where those who long ago abandoned thought

Of faith, of hope, of spiritual insight

Fall back into the stark familiar forms

Ignoring the beliefs which lead to life.

            You deserve much more and this limp praise

            Insults your memory and your loving ways.

Brian Hick May 2013

©copyright Sally Hick 14.5.25

 1274

My birthday's eve, bright sunlight and clear skies,

A morning shopping for the plastic cups,

Bowls and crisps and nuts.  No need for pies

On days like this as  spring time gently ups

The anti towards next weeks Jack-in-the-Green,

And the release of summer, though he must die

That crops might rise, birds mate and the lean

Winter months be just a memory.

How different from that day of endless grief

When you walked out to face a vile death,

Spat upon, derided, in belief

That what you did had meaning, and the Breath

Of Life, which freely fills my soul today,

Died in you, so I won't have to pay.

Brian Hick 29.4.13

©Sally Hick 30.4.25

 1266

Which way forward, given I am confused

And silence is the order of the day?

How can I decide when all's unclear?

No prophecy to point me on my way,

No sudden insight, message from above

No flash of light, no laws I must obey;

Just a feeling that I have to change,

Be positive, rather than this drift

From one unseemly moment to the next

Hoping that this one will give the lift

I need, the gentle breath to rise above

The dulling clouds and know the Son's bright gift.

Brian Hick spring 2013

©copyright Sally Hick 28.4.25

 1265

I know your silence is more palpable

Than any chatter here or holy writ,

But when I need an answer I'd prefer it,

As a human, if it chanced to fit

Within the normal range of understanding

Like talking to a friend for wise advice

From somebody I trusted, not demanding

Obedience on the strength of ancient vice.

I realise of course I'm daft to ask it

Given that nobody that I know

Has ever had a peep out of you lately

And problems here on earth just grow and grow.

So why, despite the evidence I fear,

Do I still believe that you are here?

Brian Hick  March 2013

©copyright Sally Hick 25.4.25

 1351

Between engagements

What do I want for tomorrow?

I've a day off in Brum;

A time for relaxation

(Given there is no sun)?

A time to think, to consider

Just what I want from today.

To open up ideas,

Far from the mocking fray.

Of meeting after meeting,

Of emails and phone-calls,

One damn thing after another;

No space for me at all.

No space to see the pathway,

No space to unwind,

No space to sort confusion,

No space for me to find

The Way you set before me,

The Way I want to go,

The Way that is so easy

For in my heart I know

That all that's really needed

Is my willingness to see

That you are always waiting;

The problem here - is me.

Brian Hick March 2013

©copyright Sally Hick 5.4.25

 1252

The day is full of promise, so why not I?

The morning air is crisp, the sky is clear

The sun is pushing through the silhouette

Of winter trees, so why should I fear?

If you are in the sun and in the air,

If nothing can exist without your law,

If everything cell confirms your gift of love,

Why am I still shaken to the core?

Could it be your silence frightens me?

That knowing you are there is not enough;

Those indications of transcendent truth

Are pretty useless living in the rough

And tumble of our daily human lives

As in a moment all the world dissolves

Into a mass of contradiction, wrung

With guilt, adrift, and nothing holds.

For some maybe, faith hangs on by a thread

Hoping you are there, still in control,

While chaos laughs at our naivety

Believing that you over-arch the whole

In some comprehended innocence

Linking quantum leaps to summer rain

Answering all evils with a kiss,

All will be well, for Daddy's home again.

If only - but the silence never ends;

And faith is fragile in the face of facts

Hurled by the rationalist and scientific

To analyse potential god-like acts.

Brian Hick February 2013

©copyright Sally Hick 21.2.25

 1249

Julian's Sparrow

Little birdy in the tree

Do you see what I can see,

Or is your troubled sight

Oblivious to the coming night?

While you're perched there in the sun

Chirping out to everyone

Does that distant cloud not warn

Of the swift advancing storm?

Are you not afraid that soon

Wrapped in cataclysmic gloom

You may suffer, you may die,

Blighted, though you know not why?

Still you sing on, while I fret

Over things not happened yet,

Over thins that may not be

And my mind is never free

From weight of what I've done

What has been and what's to come,

And while I regurgitate

All the awfulness of fate

Little birdy in the tree

You sing on so prettily

Knowing there's no need to dwell

When God has said all will be well.

Brian Hick February 2013

©copyright Sally Hick 18.2.25

1333a

        Miracles are a problem;

                 Believe one

And you have to believe them all. 

1333b

          Trees in the morning mist

             Backlit by winter sun;

Blackened bones bathed in bright gold.

Brian Hick January 2014

©copyright Sally Hick 29.1.25

 1234

Boxing Day

The cat is on the windowsill, the sky is turning blue

And somewhere up in heaven you are wondering what to do

Now evolution's settled and everything's in place

And you've turned the whole thing over to the restless human race.

Perhaps you've let things slide a bit, putting up your feet

After all the effort of creating in the heat

Worm and woodlouse, whale and whelk,

Reindeer, caribou, gnu and elk,

Lion, leopard, wolf and fox,

Sheep and goat and cow and ox;

And then the glory of your strife

Man and woman came to life.

But, wait a moment, was that really such a good idea

Given what has happened since you made us appear?

Just look at all the mess we've made, the violence, the war,

The massacres, the genocides, the trampling of the poor,

The arrogance, the cons, the lies, the tyranny, the law -

For even law can be abused and set against the few

Who would seek the greater good and make all things new.

Was mankind such a god idea when you look at what we've done

And so much of it simply in the name of having fun?

How many of us really yearn to fight the foreign foe

Or insist that our ideas are better, and we'd go

To any lengths to prove the point, even if we had

To murder half the human race before we all went mad?

If Jesus came with love and peace, why are we still fighting,

And if you are the only God, why is life so frightening,

With Jew and Muslim, Buddhist, Christian, Zoroastrian, who

All claim to know you best, and know what is true?

Perhaps I'll wait the still small voice, the silence which will show

Me that you are still around, and which way I should go

In all this mess, this omni-shambles, which might just be okay

If I should sense, when all seems dark, a Light to show the Way.

Brian Hick December 2012

©copyright Sally Hick 1.1.25

 1227

So busy, that the hours slip away

As if my work alone makes life worthwhile

And thoughts of you can be ignored until

The work is done.

So busy, that I could feel quite content

Filling every moment of the day

In service and good works as if that might

Just be enough.

So busy, that I hardly think of you;

The office passes, words upon my lips,

The pages turn, as if it will suffice

To have read through.

While you, who caused whatever is to be -

From distant star to barnacles that sit

Gently flushing in the evening tide -

Are waiting, still.

As if all you had to do eternally

Was listen for that moment when I say

I've reached the end and there is nothing more

That I can do.

But turn, at last, hoping you will be there -

Forgetting that, while I might drift away

You never moved -  to sort out the chaos

In my life.

And silently, before the words are said

You've smoothed the edges, planed away the points,

Set back the joints and stood me on my feet,

Complete again.

When will I Iearn to see the maker's mark

Rather than emoting like a child

Raging in the playground, where no harm

Can ever come

Save for the self inflicted bruises and the

Pain of needless separation, from

The One whose love will always keep me true

While life endures.

Brian Hick December 2012

©copyright Sally Hick 4.12.24

 1324

Rye

You haven't spoken but I'm happy to wait

Calmer in the thought that you have heard,

You're on the case, you've got it all in hand

And sometime soon I'll waken  to your word.

You haven't spoken but I know you care

Teasing our concerns without the pain

Of confrontation, or the lurking guilt

Which throbs like summer fever on the wane.

You haven't spoken but I know your love

Surrounds, upholds, encompasses this strife

Like sunlight breaking on a winter's day

To turn the mists of doubt into new life.

Brian Hick November 2013

©copyright Sally Hick 25.11.24