Fading Village Church by Rick Hartwell

Noted through the open doors --

Slanted shafts of raw morning sun

Reflecting off old, oaken pews;

Another orthodox dawning casting

Sad silhouettes of sedentary souls;

Stained glass windows depicting the

Old new word amidst wounded panes;

Edges worn on pew seats by the

Ups and downs of life and prayer;

Initials of part-time lovers carved

Into seatbacks and bible holders;

Worn hymnals, smudged by fingered

Torn pages, dog-eared by repetition;

Carved stone baptismal font, calked,

Cracked, and slowly leaking holy water;

Statues of sainted, brooding ancients,

Marbled robes, chipped and faded;

Steeple bells tolling calls to service,

Emptiness from a looped recording --

While plastic lilies on the alter gather dust.

(image - Old Gilroy Presbyterian Church)

Rick Hartwell is a retired middle school teacher living in Moreno Valley, California, with his wife of thirty-five years (poor soul, her, not him), their disabled daughter, one of their sons and his ex-wife and their two children, and ten cats! Yes, ten. He has previously been employed as: apprentice carpenter; dairy ranch hand; plywood mill worker (twice); plastics manufacturing plant; newspaper delivery; armed security; facilities analyst; telecommunications analyst. supervisor (twice) and manager; business manager; US Army - infantryman, legal clerk (twice), legal clerk instructor, Warrant Officer and law office manager; and, high school teacher for the emotionally disturbed (twice).