Poem of the Week: "1893 Prayer Book"

Upper Moreland-Willow Grove Patch is happy to present poems from the residents of the Upper Moreland area.

This week's poem:

1893 Prayer Book

By Linda Barrett

Cousin Lisa arrived

back into our lives,

carrying a strange book

in a worn gray suede bag

hidden for so many generations

Its black leather cover

scuffed along its edges

but its binding still intact

Opening its yellowed pages,

I inhaled its dusty turmeric odor,

the 19^th century’s redolent spice

The Episcopal faith’s ancient words

read coherently clear

despite its antique print

Our Great, Great Grandmother

owned this book

religiously took it to church

bookmarked the Easter Service

with one made of a mitten shaped bobby pin

left a faded rose petal

in between the marriage service’s pages

and a small white feather

perhaps collected from a fallen angel

Then with in ancient well ink

and metal pen nib,

She etched her initials onto its fly leaf

dated it 1938 then

handed it down to my aunt,

my mother’s sister

as her confirmation present

who opted for talking to dead spirits

rather than to Christ the Lord

Yet, it thankfully reminded me

Our Lord remains a faithful refuge

from one generation to the next

---

About the poet:

Linda Barrett is a member of the

---

Have a poem you'd like published here?

Send them to gerrydungan@patch.com—don't forget to say a little bit about yourself, and the best way to get in touch with you. Please include "Poem of the Week" in the subject line.