by Sarah Margaret Dicks

Stripped of her lush leaves,
She weathers the autumnal purge
Wind and chill came like thieves
But Grace and Peace in her converge

Though her branches seem bare, her spirit is dressed
Kindness and Joy are her new wardrobe
His thoughtful presence in her made manifest
She is reverent in suffering, like God’s beloved Job

His protective hands are working for her good
She “will not be anxious in a year of drought”
She sings in meditation to his Fatherhood
That He lives within her is beyond all doubt.

Undefined by the season
Resolutely, she abides the fall
Because her roots stretch and deepen
Her branches will again sprout, green and tall.

Sarah Margaret Dicks is a High School Theology and English Teacher in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Her work has been featured in Friends of the Tulsa City-County Library Online Publication and is forthcoming in Northeastern State University Writing Contest Collection. Volume 3, Fall 2020/2021.