THESE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

(Written with love for my brother and brother-in-law who have again and again made beautiful things with their hands and in the doing remind me of what is possible.)
Furniture made of wood,
No screws,
connection nonetheless.
Crafted with hands and body,
Mind.
Imagination made possible.
Goodness,
Inherent in the form,
Hoped for in striving.
In awe and admiration, I’ve seen them do this,
Touched the surfaces and felt their grace.
These things are real.
Things I can only relate to in striving for words
To explain what it means to be alive.
Craft,
But much more than this,
When it reflects attributes of a virtuous life
Of meaning, purpose and love
When giving in could have been easy
and struggle seems at times,
absurdly hard.
Managing to stay resolute to a life imagined
Seems the only way forward.