Today we celebrate St. Brigid a woman who played a critical role in Irish history. Her feast day marks the end of the darkness of winter and heralds the new season of hope and growth. Along with St. Patrick, Brigid is the co-patroness of Ireland. She is also the patron saint of poets and is known for her miracles of healing for the disenfranchised. I wrote the following poem about St. Brigid.
On St. Brigid’s Day
I hold a relic, a sliver or her bone,
no bigger than a hangnail
wrapped like a badge
the edges stitched with green thread
to help me quell
my fear of lightning.
I weave Brigid’s cross today
press firmly my fingers on the straw
crisscrossing and turning them
to make the central knot
to seek her heart, that heart
that heard anomalies
like lepers thirsty
who want to celebrate with beer,
and the woman who did not want
her child, I pray let me hear
and heal.
