How to Stay Strong in Your Religious Beliefs

I wrote the following poem in answer to the question, " How do you hold your own commitments while remaining open to encounters with those who hold different commitments?"

As I Grown by the River

As I grow by the river,

I stand straight and strong.

                My roots hold me still in times of flood

                             and stretch deep in times of drought.

                My branches reach for the sustenance of the sun.

I have stood here long, as my trunk attests,

                through strong winds and cold nights.

I stretch my arms so that I may feel the breeze.

                I welcome birds to nest with me.

               I play with the chipmunks and squirrels who scamper about.

I try to be strong when children tie ropes to me to jump in the waters.

Sometimes, I grow weary.

My arms sag in the snow

 or my leaves fall to the riverbank. . .

                But my roots are deep. My trunk is strong.

                              And life will rise in me again.

                                          And if I am really very lucky,

Perhaps one seed will fall from me 

and stick in the mud 

and there

                Another tree will grow 

                    – perhaps it will not be exactly like me, but

                                It will have deep roots 

                                           and 

                   outstretched limbs that reach for the sun.