FORTY YEARS

of the Friends Conference

HERTA ROSENBLATT

 

… Out of what need arose this Conference?

To what fulfillment has it led?

From door to door we walked,

from gate to gate.

Then not one of us knew winter yet.

    We learned here to trust

in the light, or the voice,

the command coming as “an opening:”

that there were other

windows to be opened,

other doors to be knocked at,

sometimes to be entered

for a moment —

To take a hand,

Trembling and tired in the long waiting,

To look and to share.

   We learned new dimensions of prayer:

“Lord, let my listening be…

Let me sing answer

while song is still ringing from far mountain.”

   We have come to know halos,

the radiance

   of stillness,

   of sorrow,

   of joy

in another’s face;

and the circle within our own arms

met and embraced

by yours...and yours...

We have learned to know the meaning

of pilgrimage…

 

 

 

HERTA ROSENBLATT decided she was a poet when she was in the first grade. With English as a second language, she is less cliche ridden than most of us. A Friends Conference pioneer and a free spirit, her dedication and verve are cherished.