March 2018
Jeannie E. Roberts
jeannie.roberts@jrcreative.biz
I live near Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, where I write, draw and paint, and often photograph my natural surroundings. I enjoy spending time outdoors and taking walks with our dog, a thirteen-year-old golden doodle named Yogi. My poems and photography appear in Bramble Literary Magazine and in other journals and anthologies. My fourth poetry collection, The Wingspan of Things, was recently released by Dancing Girl Press. To learn more, please visit www.jrcreative.biz.​

Prayer in My Pocket
 
 
Like a poem, I keep prayer in my pocket.
Copies of Niebuhr's Serenity Prayer
and St. Francis of Assisi's Peace Prayer
endow my pocketbook.
                                         
When I drive, prayer takes flight. Metal
wings inscribed with gentle words clip
to my visor: Guardian angels by your
side . . . through your travels protect
 
and guide. I exist through prayer,
give thanks for it, and surrender to its
inner calm. Whether it expresses itself
externally or is internally petitioned,
 
for me, prayer provides comfort, softens
the edges, aids during the pendulous hours,
when doubt hangs its opaque shade.
Prayer embraces my essence,
                                                                                                              
offers creative and intuitive abundance,
and buoys my hope for a better, more
loving world. When evening falls
to the long shadows of trees,
 
I recall the day's gifts―the turn of daybreak,
a found feather's quill, a meadow lark's
whistle, the silver spill of children's
laughter―for I've paid attention,
 
been witness to divine and generous
expression. Like a prayer, they remain
in my pocket, are held in veneration,
knowing that my awareness and gratitude
is enough.   
©2018 Jeannie E. Roberts
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