“What the Psalmist Knew” uses the golden shovel poetic form, which was invented by contemporary poet Terrance Hayes with his poem of that name. In this form, the last words of each line, read in order, form a line from an existing poem (Hayes's poem is an homage to “We Real Cool” by Gwendolyn Brooks). I used it here to express what I feel when I read one of my favorite lines of Scripture, Psalms 98:8.
What the Psalmist Knew
After 98:8
The summer wind is warm for you. Let
it cradle you, and rock. And when the
autumn's earthtilt goldens light, and rivers
chill, hear solace crackling in brown leaves. Through clap
of thunder, grip of ice, know you rest in hands
of earth and sky. Beneath the
naked mud, or snow, or drought-land, hills
ache with hidden green. Make a leap
of faith: drink in the sunrise, for
all revolves, and pain is no truer than joy
Kimberly Gladman