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"The quality of mercy is not strain'd;
it droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven
upon the place beneath: it is twice blest."—
--The Merchant of Venice
two hours of rain
in the fourth dry year drops
upon this place beneath
half a dozen sword ferns,
hellebores, violets, woodruff
sweet, on all the small places
of this earthbound constellation,
thirst catching mercy's fall; twice blest
we set down our trowel and rake
and from the porch, cool and dry, study
drop by drop from heaven exactly how
gentle, not strained,
mercy falls from out a summer sky
From Ten Mile Creek Almanac (Finishing Line Press, 2019).
Used with permission.
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Grace Hughes Chappell says, over the years, she’s been a mom, a daughter, and a sister, has taken care of ‘things’ (house repairs, car repairs, relationship repairs), worked as a private tutor, an English teacher, a travel agent, a receptionist, a telephone book delivery-person, a house cleaner, a reader to the visually impaired, a caterer, a snow-shoveler, and a writer. Her work is widely published and she is the author of ten mile creek almanac. For 50-some years, Grace and her husband, Don, have lived in northern California, in Mendocino County, and in San Francisco but, as of 2024, they have relocated to Minneapolis, Minnesota, to be near family. Grace's advice for a good life is to be kind, enjoy your family and friends, don’t be a drag (laugh a lot, sing, dance, do anything
that involves music), read a lot, learn to cook a decent meal, watch sunsets and birds and dogs, find something to do for which you have some aptitude, then be willing to work hard at it!
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Bluezinnia:
I likr this a great deal. Focusing lovingly on the details of the plants and then dropping back to name them a constellation was quite a striking and skillful way of reminding us that everything's connected.
I also liked how you introduced the Shakespeare quote. It wasn't obvious or labored, which made it connect all the better.
If an old lady may say this near the end of a long and poetry-reading, poetry-writing life: You, my dear, have some serious chops. Please keep using them,
Posted 10/01/2022 07:28 PM
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Anastasia:
Mercy and rain - both make such a difference to us!
Posted 08/19/2022 11:47 PM
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Adriana:
lovely last four lines, lovely poem
Posted 08/19/2022 05:03 PM
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Wilda Morris:
Yes, we all need mercy, and need to offer it to others - like a gentle rain.
Posted 08/19/2022 10:24 AM
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Larry Schug:
I am deeply touched by the metaphor I perceive in these words. Mercy--we need it so badly.
Posted 08/19/2022 08:43 AM
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