Poem by Deb Norton | Firelight
There are stories here
to fill your heart with tears
that fall flaming
into the soul.
No Instagram wonders with viral following;
No super-hero narratives of marvellous deeds –
but epic battles nonetheless,
fought on obscure fronts
of the General’s choosing.
Here are tales of tender tenacity
wrestled by the Jabbok
through the long night,
contending for the blessing,
refusing to let go …
… yet no less tightly held.
Here we hear of the ordinary and unknown,
the unacclaimed,
setting out in extraordinary obedience
on impossible journeys
brightened by Ebenezers
though still incomplete.
Here we trace chronologies
charted through jungles of risk and rejection,
across deserts of scarcity and loss,
scaling challenge and disappointment,
pierced by sacrifice and suffering,
but steadfast in daily determination
to do the mundane again,
and again,
holding true to the compass
to reach, to serve, to love.
The odds against
stand stacked steeply
thirty-, sixty-, a hundredfold
but another tale
provokes persistent hope
of a single seed that yields a greater harvest.
So they lay down lives,
building patient bridges,
their stories sprung
from the greatest of all stories
and the Life
laid down to bridge the great divide.
There are songs here
poured out by voices
generous as the hearts that pulse within them
warmly inviting all
to join the circle of celebration.
Songs, brave and bold,
richly rhythmed,
wide as the green plains
from which they rise,
patterned like Maasai beads
with layered harmonies.
Strong songs treasured
and held together
by melodies and messages
that transcend tongues,
tribes and borders.
Songs to make the feet rejoice
and the heart dance.
Songs reflecting that great Song,
ancient and soon-coming,
that will sing our dreams true
in a music
better and more beautiful
than any we can conceive.
And there is respite here
as deep waters stir again
under a deep, sweet breath,
calling deep to deep,
and the oil flows down,
down, down –
rekindling dwindling embers,
unweighting weariness,
loosening eagles to fly again.
We linger long around the fire,
a communion of shared stories,
shared songs,
shared strength.
The multi-hued blankets
of our textured cultures
glow in the light,
reflected, too, in each dear face.
Our common heart laughs,
loves, learns from
our diversity.
At last,
with bread in our baskets,
and flasks fresh-filled,
weapons for our warfare now sharply polished,
and new tools for our tasks held in our hands,
thankful and thoughtful,
we part,
yet stay together.
(Inspired by the stories, songs and courageous service of the people at the CRY Forum in Tanzania, May 2026, and our visit to a church and preschool in Maasailand)
