The Rock Cleft; A Poem

by Ana Lisa de Jong

When your glory passes by
we have to find a rock cleft.

You are so often seen in the
blink between the eye’s lashes,

the space between words,

the sprouting green from the cracks
on the pavement.

And when your glory passes by

we are not having a party,
but hidden, shielded.

All your goodness is too much for us.

And instead, we think,
‘what was that?’

Like a lightening fork in the dark,
or a touch so brief, hard to discern.

But we stretch it out
in our thoughts, imagination,

that the touch or sliver of light
becomes enough

to illuminate our days,
and our nights –

though they might be spent
in the cleft of a rock.

Ana Lisa de Jong
Living Tree Poetry
May 2020

‘Then Moses said, “Now show me your glory.”
And the Lord said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I
will proclaim my name, the Lord, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I
will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.
But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live.”
Then the Lord said, “There is a place near me where you may stand on a rock.
When my glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft in the rock and cover you
with my hand until I have passed by. 
Then I will remove my hand and you will see my back; but my face must not be seen.”’
Exodus 33

For more poems for Ana Lisa de Jong, check out the free downloads available in our store:

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