DOMINION

WORDS LIKE LIGHT

Friday, September 9, 2022

         I live with my wife in a small house on a small lot in a small town, but sometimes it becomes clear to me that my true home – my dominion, you might say – is far larger than that. The word ‘dominion’ stems from the Latin word domus, meaning ‘home’, and my real home is a vast one, stretching from the most distant stars to the deepest depths of the ocean. The truth is that, like all of us, I am an inseparable and essential part of a measureless universe.  My home is not Mystic, Connecticut, USA, but the universe itself, a universe where all things, from new-born babies to massive spans of mountains, are of equal importance. We all share dominion in this dominion of ours, this universe that knows no end to its territories and provinces.  From infinitesimal insects, to trees in forests, to presidents, to poor wanderers — we’re all kings and queens forever and everywhere — if only we knew it. This morning, lucky for me, I’m knowing it.

THE EMPIRE OF BLESSINGS
(about Patricia F., 46, Blessings, CT)

She calls the village of Blessings
a majestic empire, 
a dominion administered 
by each magnificent moment.
She says 
it’s the realm of royal trees 
and their noble leaves,
of sovereign thoughts
and endless regal feelings. 
For her, 
Blessings is the territory of friendliness
and the province of conviviality. 
Even small stones are kings and queens
in Blessings, 
and specks of swanky dust 
on tables and chairs 
call it their precious nation. 
She says 
she’s one of countless rulers here, 
along with princely winds 
and stately sparrows 
beneath bushes.