I. Nourishment
O Vitality!
true blush and bloom
of those who’ve died
but live now
in Heaven,
to you, Aliment of the enfeebled,
who sustain us
with that lasting Sweetness—
honey of your own flesh
that soaks, cell by cell,
our hunger—
thanks.
Because you who are Food
let yourself be fed:
you nursed;
you shared our bread and fish.
(You, our Ambrosia!)
Please,
provision me
completely
so that in fasting, praying,
following your will,
my soul,
fattened by your fervor,
may convalesce
and
thrive.
—Mia Schilling Grogan
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