My friend who talks to God
says we’re going to have to stop
saying The Universe
when we mean God.
I’m not sure why,
but as far as I can gather,
God wants us to know and acknowledge
that it is him, God, who is
responsible for everything,
and who looks after us.
(My friend calls God Him,
and also calls him Almighty God.)
Well that’s all right,
but I call God Her —
although understanding She’s both.
And neither.
And more, a million times more.
And I like the idea
and the image
of a great, benevolent Universe
folding us round,
cradling us,
and hearing our every prayer.
As, indeed, God does. But why
can’t God be The Universe?
Isn’t S/He everything?
I think that includes The Universe.
I don’t know
what God is going to do
if people keep saying The Universe
when they really mean God.
What will he do to stop them?
Will he cancel free will?
Or punish them? (Surely
that would be excessive?)
You see, I have to think ‘him’
when I talk about a God
who would do all that.
I just don’t think my loving Mother would.
How will we know, anyway,
when the time has come to stop?
Will there be a big announcement?
Or will everyone get a mental flash
all at the same time, and just know?
I can believe
God is more than the Universe.
Science now tells us
this Universe is only one of many.
But this is the one I know,
which has always listened to me kindly
and always delivered.
When I say the Universe,
I think of the vastness,
the All-That-Is.
But I don’t want to say All-That-Is
every time I talk to God.
I don’t want to say
Everything-Nothing
or Father-Mother-God
or anything like that,
which might be more accurate.
As a term of endearment, they all
feel too elaborate,
and kinda clumsy.
I usually say Mother
when I talk to God.
When I’m talking about God,
I often say the Goddess.
Or else, if I'm being ambiguous —
acknowledging God's ambiguity —
I might say the Deity.
Sometimes I even say God.
I admit, I often do say the Universe.
She doesn’t seem to mind.
She knows I mean Her
and I know that She knows.
and I know that She knows.
At 'imaginary garden with real toads', prompt 21 for 'Poems in April' isn't specific: we can share a poem new or old. As I am writing a new poem every day this month, here is one I just finished.
