We have so many things

we cannot count them all.

(We’ve added virtual

to piles of actual…)

We’ve had to rent more space–

or buy another house

just to store all our things.

And then we find, of course,

our houses are too small;

we tear them down so all

our stuff, our toys, the things

we bought to sooth our soul

will not have to be thrown

away.  (Because our own

city, village, or town

is surrounded by things

in stinking, seeping hills

of trash, garbage, the frills

we thought were essentials.)

Our hell is filled with things.

– Steve Shoemaker, Urbana, IL, May 9, 2012

“Man and nature belong together in their created glory – in their tragedy and in their salvation.” – Paul Tillich quote on monument in Tillich Park, New Harmony, Indiana.

Paul JohannesTillich’s gravestone in the Paul TillichPark, New Harmony, Indiana

Inscription on Paul Tillich’s gravestone reads:

 “He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water that bringeth forth his fruit in due season. His leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.”

– Psalm 1: 3