In the blazing heat
the trees and grasses golden;
they are candleflame and firelight.
In the shimmering cold
the frogs and crickets amplify;
they are thunderclap and echo.
In the winding cave
the dripstone spikes lengthen
into mountain and valley
where the heat blinds and the cold paralyzes,
the climb and the cliff wear and scatter,
abandonment and fright surround;
I can not see, and yet I know
the living light that radiates within,
illuminates the cracks and begs me to begin.
“Any man who follows me will not be walking in the dark: he will have the light of life, says the Lord.” (John 8:12; Universalis)
Generous Wisdom | Spacious Heart 
I love “the trees and grasses golden; they are candleflame and firelight.”! “Illuminates the cracks and begs me to begin” is a wonderful ending. This is such an interesting piece. The juxtapositions and progression of heat and cold. Lovely, dear friend!!! I like the quote at the end too…God Bless.
It seems a bit different for me. And I’m not sure it says what I was hoping to say; but I put it in God’s hands and pressed publish ! We are always being tested in some way- through fire and ice- these challenges that mold and polish us. And yet, even after all this, we must always keep striving toward holiness. Christ’s light is always within us; even though it is a comfort in the suffering of our lives, it is also a call to love, and love more, and live more deeply…