pre-text: i woke up to the news that the House of God is burning and as heart wrenching as it was to see the amber and black, i felt this unexpected comfort from the solidarity of people coming together to offer up songs, prayers and comfort to each other as they stand and watch Our Lady engulfed in flames that did not look like it would ever be put out.
muse: Cathedrale Notre Drame de Paris
That image of the falling spire
Amidst the burning smoke and fire
Forever seared in the minds of the many who see it from the streets
And all around the world, we felt that drop in our stomachs' pits
The yellow and ambers so vivid you almost had to stare
Even the hues of the sunset cannot compare
Notre Dame engulfed in flames
No one knows yet who or what is to blame
Maybe Our Lady knows this is what is needed in a world of weak
During this time of darkness, especially timely during the Holy Week
Some mourn the loss of its Gothic architectural magnificence
Others try to rationalize and analyze its relevance
Leaders vow to rebuild, to restore the damage done by the destruction
Yet so many come together in the spirit of consolidation
To pray, to process, to mourn, to make sense of what does not
And to realize that nothing is permanent and forever, except God
Whoever and whatever you choose your God to be
It is plain to see
That lives do not need to be lost to feel loss
We are essentially the same, whether or not you believe in the Cross
The world has to wait for the smoke to clear
and the morning light of day to see if what is left is dear
It is fire that brings light to darkness
The same fire reduces everything to dust and ashes
Some may look for the phoenix to rise
While others clutch unto what is lost and left with despair and cries
None of us knows who is right or wise
Like a mother who makes countless selfless sacrifices
Our Lady burned and she broke, and yet she still stands
Her facade forever changed but her foundation is steady on land
The distinct tune of Ave Maria is hauntingly beautiful
Almost fitting for what happened today is as devastatingly hopeful
