He sat under the boughs of a great tree
fasted and prayed on a wind ravished desert floor.
She saw visions in her cold cell fastened to a church wall
lived impoverished in a walkup room over a city street.

What did they see
when they saw what they saw?

I saw a bird bathing in a pool of water
a leaf fall from the maple tree
an acorn from the oak.
I saw jays shaking acorns from the oak tree
squirrels burying them in autumn ground.
I saw the sun rise the east
the moon set in the west.

What did I see
when I saw what I saw?

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Portland, Oregon – October 4 2018

Feast of St. Francis. In memory of the Buddha, Jesus, Julian of Norwich, and Dorothy Day.