In front of monstrance, on his way to work,
A man kneels down in prayer, his head on floor;
A teen there meditates before she clerks,
At a nearby 7-Eleven store;
A teacher prays a chaplet, bead by bead,
Before taking a bus to meet her class;
A salesman lifts up prayers for those in need,
But has to leave by nine because, alas,
Only one group stays with the Lord all day,
Spending their time, His company they keep.
He keeps them dry and safe there as they pray,
Or sit and think, or often even sleep,
The homeless voices; lilting, prayer-filled snores,
Like cherubim in Heaven they adore.
Tim Bete is a Discalced Carmelite Secular and a member of the Community of Our Mother of Good Counsel in Beavercreek, Ohio, where he has served as a Formator, on Council, and as President. His writing has appeared in media outlets and anthologies, including Amazing Grace for the Catholic Heart, Catholic Philly, Catholic Exchange, Integrated Catholic Life, Presence: A Journal of Catholic Poetry, Apostolate of the Little Flower Magazine, and The Carmel Clarion. He served on the faculty at the Catholic Imagination Conference and appears on the Carmelite Conversationspodcast, which he also helps produce. Tim has published four books, including The Raw Stillness of Heaven and Wanderings of an Ordinary Pilgrim. You can contact him at http://www.TimBete.net.