(Sam May/Flickr)

Know that limits are for leaping;

are but theorems,

lines and brackets drawn

imposingly but bare

around the past of when and where,

and do not touch,

with their severe necessity

the greenspot where your life dwells.



There are laws for low and high,

for water and for dry,

none of which apply

when Purple Martins sweep the water with their wings,

rise with wet and evening meat,

and fly.



And know that we,

beyond our tight entelechy,

are something more:

are, yes, God’s spoor.

Luke Timothy Johnson is emeritus Woodruff Professor of New Testament and Christian Origins at the Candler School of Theology, Emory University, and a frequent Commonweal contributor.

 

Also by this author
Published in the May 2021 issue: View Contents
© 2025 Commonweal Magazine. All rights reserved. Design by Point Five. Site by Deck Fifty.