Summa Cum Laude (Prayer Song for Sallye Anne Hairston Maxwell)

"She delights the earth
with her footsteps,
and in speaking, fulfills
the desires of the deaf"

A flower, a synesthetic glow...
An inflorescent melody
(in search of combination)
That violates its meter
And disregards its rhythm
(as defined by classic standards)
To uphold its right to grow.
A pearl, a diamond,
Cast among swine...
Tomorrow is retrieved from the rubbish
And polished to a more brilliant luster.

A vessel, undefiled...
Well built and well prepared:-
To weather all the storms and blasts;
To sail the oceans, deep and vast;
To overcome the dark morass;
To persevere until the last;-
And with me, heaven, share.

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