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RAIN PRAYER by Carol Reedy Rogero

This poem was inspired by the recent Pulse Nightclub tragedy in Orlando, Florida: a town I grew up in and live near today...

Like millions of others around the world I have so many emotions about the event. I felt compelled to write about it and started several different essays, eventually tearing each one up, feeling my words could never say enough to do justice to or pay tribute to the 49 beautiful souls gunned down by hate. Days passed and then while sitting in my home office listening to the pulsing water as it hit my roof on a rainy afternoon, these words arrived. May they be heard. May they be of benefit.

Rain Prayer
by Carol Reedy Rogero

Wash away
the choking sediment of hate
transported like pollen on incendiary winds.
the invisible film of separateness
coating traitorous hearts.

Rinse out
the marrow deep prejudices
the fear of that unknown, that foreign, that strange
those centuries old perceptions sewed into consciousness
by unconscious souls.

Cleanse us
of limiting ideologies
the unholy lies we tell ourselves
our selfish denial of interdependence
our staunch proclamations of "them" and "us".

Flood
our hearts
that we might recognize the pulse of all humanity
as our own
and save our world.

Carol Reedy Rogero: “By day I’m a 6th grade public school teacher, grandmother, mother, wife, daughter and sister. By night I’m a 3am poet and writer, a traveler, just like you, walking my path, trying to stop and smell the roses, be conscious of and respectful to my fellow travelers, and read the road signs along the way.  Each day I pray for guidance (there’s where the pedestrian life and walking with God comes into the picture) to make the “right” turns, do some good, and leave no litter behind.  My happy place is by the ocean, which I’m lucky enough to live near and where you’ll find me on most sunny Sundays, meditating, practicing yoga, writing or scouring the beach for trash and heart shaped coquina. I love to read, write, travel and discover the connections that we all have with each other. I blog here, where I hope my readers find something inspirational that speaks to their heart and touches their soul.


~If you are interested in seeing your poetry appear in this blog, or submitting a poem by a woman that has inspired you, please click here for submission guidelines. I greatly look forward to hearing from you!~
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