The sky pools red this Hallowtide.
We enter, ease into a pew,
And whisper prayers for those who died,
For relatives she never knew.
They’re my lost souls. She wears all black
For later when she’ll trick or treat
And thinks of candy in her sack
As I write names across the sheet.
Midway through life, caught on time’s hook,
I wonder if some day her child
Will open the remembrance book
To make sure that my name is filed.
Returning to the leaf-clogged street,
I see masked bones in revelry,
A whirl of ghouls and scuffling feet,
An angel glancing back at me.
—Steven Knepper
While I have you, can I ask you something? I’ll be quick.
Twenty-five thousand people subscribe to First Things. Why can’t that be fifty thousand? Three million people read First Things online like you are right now. Why can’t that be four million?
Let’s stop saying “can’t.” Because it can. And your year-end gift of just $50, $100, or even $250 or more will make it possible.
How much would you give to introduce just one new person to First Things? What about ten people, or even a hundred? That’s the power of your charitable support.
Make your year-end gift now using this secure link or the button below.
