In the sixth month the
angel Gabriel… (Luke 1:26)
Bellini has it wrong
I was not kneeling
on my satin cushion,
in a beam of light,
head slightly bent.
Painters always
skew the scene,
as though my life
were wrapped in silks,
in temple smells.
Actually, I had just
come back from the well
placing the pitcher on the table
I bumped against the edge,
spilling water on the floor.
As I bent to wipe
it up, there was a light
against the kitchen wall,
as though someone had opened
the door to the sun.
Rag in hand,
hair across my face,
I turned to see who was entering,
unannounced, unasked.
All I saw
was light
white against the timbers.
A voice I’ve never
heard greeted me,
said I was elected, would
bear a son who’d reign
forever. The spirit
would
overshadow me.
I stood afraid.
Someone closed the door.
I dropped the rag.
--Fr. Killian McDonnell
Image source: Alexandra Goncharova, Woman Washing Floor (2013)
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