Refrain

By Kellie Brown

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Water still clings
in dense droplets
to the tips of leaves
even though the sun
wakened hours ago. 

Last night's downpours 
cleansed nature's unswept strains,
and with dawn's ascent
murky shadows bow to the
razzle-dazzle of heavenly beams. 

Beneath a canopy
of dense, doused branches
little birds—wrens, sparrows, finches
feast at feeders, their hunger
pure as freshly washed earth. 

“Look to the birds of the air,”
offered the Rabbi. 
So I do. And I pray with
St. Francis, our bird whisperer,
Make me an instrument…
Fashioned from faith,
Attuned to peace,
Resonant with love. 

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Dr. Kellie Brown is a violinist, conductor, music educator and award-winning writer whose book, The Sound of Hope: Music as Solace, Resistance and Salvation during the Holocaust and World War II (McFarland Publishing, 2020), received one of the Choice Outstanding Academic Titles awards. Her words have appeared in Earth & Altar, Psaltery & Lyre, Ekstasis, The Primer, Agape Review and Calla Press, among others. In addition to over 30 years of music ministry experience, she is a certified lay minister in the United Methodist Church and currently serves at First Broad Street United Methodist Church in Kingsport, Tennessee. More information about her and her writing can be found at kelliedbrown.com.