And Sanctify Us Also
by Elizabeth Harlan-Ferlo
Annie shares her peas with the fox
that can’t be knocked over, offers
smashed green bits to the hard plastic face,
then puts them in her own mouth.
At Varanasi temples, I bought
prasad prepared for this purpose:
sweet paste balls in a box tied once, twice,
strings crossed. After the priest offered
it, fed it to God, he gave it back.
The fox is weighted. However you push,
it bobs back. It’s arm- and legless, not real
-ly like a fox at all. Annie puts it down
for a nap and it rises back up. Exhausted,
I eat what remains of what I’d just rubbed
between my fingers, touching every
bit to make sure there was nothing
in there that could hurt her, everything
soft enough. Maybe it’s making the offering
that blesses. Maybe this is how God tastes:
such detailed, intimate knowledge
overcomes any pleasure in the mouth.
Elizabeth Harlan-Ferlo is a poet, educator, faith leader, and caregiver. Her debut collection INCARNATION, AGAIN was published in 2022 by Wipf & Stock. Recent poems can be found in The Christian Century. Elizabeth curates the Visiting Writers Series at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Portland, Oregon, where she serves as Canon for Education and the Arts.
