February 1986

late in the evening

around hearth bound-flames

we sat and read

studying your words

as the embers sing

we spoke of you

who you are

what you mean

so often it seems

you're too far away

but on that night

you sat by the fire

looking with us

at its flames

flickering upward

feeling its heat

as it burned

that night you were

more than just a distant God

you were with us

in our place

as a friend