Friday, July 31, 2026

UNCONTRIVED

          Lord, make me an instrument 
          of your peace: where there is 
          hated, let me sow love.
               —Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi


I'd settle for less
than to be made into 
an instrument,

a vessel 
in training, or even 
a cane rejected.

Premium substance
is much too 
contentious; make me

cruder 
than a weapon—
genuine as plain wood.