Old Man of Prayer
written by Mark Brown
(read by Richard Allen)
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Ignoring the cold constriction of knees long past their best
This old man of prayer persisted with long earned patience.
Painfully positioned, hand grasping each other in a determined embrace
The old man of prayer dropped his head,
eyes locking out the simple room.
He paused, to release his thoughts and invite a focus
on the one who made him
The old man of prayer knew his time was short,
but he thought slowly.
He prayed a life of friendships and family long travelled
The old man of prayer told the story as he had done many times before.
The story of love and joy that brings tears and pain
The old man of prayer found his cheeks moist with memories.
The story of failure and desire of hope that confuses and refines
The old man of prayer, with undaunted clarity pushed on.
Then pain splashed across his frail body, pushing him into the grey
And the old man of prayer knew that his time had come.
They found the old man of prayer resting peacefully against his bed,
still kneeling, hands loosely bound in prayer, a faint smile fixed on his face.
When they gently removed him they found
two knee sized worn patches in the carpet beneath him.
The ambulance attendant, quietly offered,
‘Amen.’
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3 responses so far ↓
Susan Perry // Feb 8, 2010 at 8:20 pm
Very beautiful reading and poem…brought tears to my eyes. How I would love to be the “Old Woman of Prayer” when I come to that late time in my life.
Lovely voice too! Fits the poem so perfectly! Thanks for sharing!
Mark Brown // Feb 9, 2010 at 1:51 am
This is an awesome reading Richard!! It adds so much to my poem, lifting it up. Thanks! And big thanks to you Dave for having this vision to arrange this. Appreciate it.
God bless,
Mark Brown
Richard Allen. // Feb 14, 2010 at 4:44 pm
Hi’ Mark, Thank you for your poem, it made me cry when I first read it. I know from where this old man is coming from. For almost 60 years I lived in the wilderness,then at the age of 60, almost 3 years ago, I found God and my wonderful Christian faith, and many questions were answered. It was a great blessing and a privlege to read your poem, Mark and thanks to my friend Dave Roberts who had the vision to ask me to record it, Thank you my Christian friend’s. Richard Allen.
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