This week’s poem in the Catholic Poetry Room is by Sister Lou Ella Hickman, I.W.B.S.
are not two sparrows sold for a penny (matthew 10:29)
the sparrows arrive in late afternoon
to glean among bits of grass and weeds next to my porch
i take delight when they prize the seeds that i have tossed
such little to God’s daily feast
at times they bicker over some unknown rubric
one or two decide to preen
while others dust bowl bathe
finally they discover shade and rest content
then in that shadow sleep—
the feathered praise of God
Sister Lou Ella Hickman, OVISS, has a master’s degree in theology from St. Mary’s University in San Antonio and is a former teacher and librarian. She is a certified spiritual director as well as a poet and writer. Her poems have appeared in numerous magazines such as America Magazine, First Things, Emmanuel, Third Wednesday, and New Verse News as well as in numerous anthologies, including After Shocks: The Poetry of Recovery for Life-Shattering Events. She was nominated for the Pushcart Prize in 2017 and in 2020. Her first book of poetry, she: robed and wordless (Press 53), was published in 2015. In 2021, a group of songs based on five poems from the book that had been set to music by James Lee III were performed by soprano Susanna Phillips, clarinetist Anthony McGill, and pianist Mayra Huang at 92nd Street Y in New York City. At present, five other concerts were held in various cities. Her second book of poetry, Writing the Stars will be released in October of 2024. (Press 53.)
