Field of Vision
by Richard Chess
after “NOAPHA II” by Tobi Kahn
To get here, forget the prayers you’ve learned.
Abandon the story of heaven.
Here there is no need to believe in anything
beyond land and water—water, land, and sky.
If—no, when you turn back, heaven will still be there,
the promise and threat of your being denied entry.
You know why: your most serious transgression.
The one body you wish would accompany you
to the tip of land from which, together, you could leap
into the cerulean sea, shies away from water.
So you must come here on your own.
Isn’t this what you’ve always secretly wanted?
To breathe, even if only your dying breath,
the unbleached salt air of the one place on earth
where there is no need for the idea of God?
No temple, church, or mosque to pray in.
But even here, lines lead you
to the belief there’s more to behold.
More of what? The same? Something
a human is incapable of conceiving?
If not for the invitation to imagine
what’s beyond the frame, this place
would be enough, more than enough.
Stay, if you can, with what’s in your field of vision:
white sand and cobalt-deep awakening water.
Richard Chess is the author of five books of poetry, including The Loneliest Monk (Orison Books 2026). He serves on the board of Yetzirah: A Hearth for Jewish Poetry. He directed UNC Asheville's Center for Jewish Studies for 30 years.
