Breath Poem by Dann Thomas

Surely the lowborn are but a breath,
the highborn are but a lie.
If weighed on a balance, they are nothing;
together they are only a breath. Psalm 62: 9


Breath
It pours itself into the world, giving life to man, beast and flower.
Giving off itself it taketh any form and name
Pouring through the trees, the clouds and the wave.

It floats, rushes, gusts, blows, drags and pushes
It can crush the rock and make rivers weep
It can lift up a storm, twist it and then gently lay it down to sleep

It doesn't leave a shadow nor shed light along the way
Doesn't make a mark or hold on to a possession.
Just wanders from moment to moment in arbitrary succession

It is the carrier of dreams, the whisper of tales, the spreader of rumour
Dances with mating butterflies and brushes against a star
The traveller of the universe, a rider of galaxies beyond the lighted far.

It lifts music from a reed and and gives wings to a seed
It dramatises and perfumes a rainy day
It powders the flowers face and gives a song its way

It caresses the kings pillow and kisses the dog in the street
Parts the lips of the great, the poor and the fool
Burns up passion like the sun and cools down the moon

It rings from Church and temple bells and sings through minarets.
Lifts up from praying lips and carries hopes all the way
For an answers to faith's many calls, every single day

It has brushed through the past and will do so with the future
It carries the words of saints and sinners too
It breathes through time, and still breathes through you

It is the breath of God, the song of the trees, the wind of life.
But when it ceases to kiss the soul, it is said
Then man falls, the flower fades and the beast is dead.