Elizabeth Barrette (ysabetwordsmith) wrote,
Elizabeth Barrette
ysabetwordsmith
  • Mood: busy

Poem: "The Games of Purgatory"

This poem came from the December 4, 2012 Poetry Fishbowl.  It was inspired and sponsored by janetmiles.  This poem belongs to the Fledgling Grace series, which you can explore further via the Serial Poetry page.  Read about foursquare and Doctor Knickerbocker online.


The Games of Purgatory


There is a special corner of Purgatory
for the souls of unbaptized infants
and children who die unshriven with
their little sins hung 'round their necks like mittens
to stay until they grow ready for Heaven.

This, too, is where forgotten games go,
foursquare and Doctor Knickerbocker
and rhymes lost with dead languages.

Uriel sweeps them all up with his soft dark wings
and introduces them to each other.

Tags: cyberfunded creativity, fantasy, fishbowl, poem, poetry, reading, spirituality, writing
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  • 8 comments
thnidu

thnidu

December 6 2012, 02:55:18 UTC 8 years ago

Oh, that is warm. Melikes it.
ysabetwordsmith

Thank you!

ysabetwordsmith

December 6 2012, 04:28:58 UTC 8 years ago

I'm happy to hear that.
catsittingstill

catsittingstill

December 6 2012, 12:49:21 UTC 8 years ago

I hadn't realized foursquare and doctor knickerbocker were forgotten.

I played foursquare and I knew the rhyme for doctor knickerbocker though I don't remember if I knew the clapping pattern that went with it.
ysabetwordsmith

Well...

ysabetwordsmith

December 6 2012, 21:27:06 UTC 8 years ago

The prompter cited those as games that were known previously, but don't seem to be passed along among children today.
cadenzamuse

cadenzamuse

December 11 2012, 22:41:59 UTC 8 years ago

Yes, rather. That seems live a very Uriel thing to do. And I love the image of tiny sins like tiny mittens on strings, so as not to be lost (although on a religious/spiritual level, I hate it).
ysabetwordsmith

Thank you!

ysabetwordsmith

December 11 2012, 23:19:06 UTC 8 years ago

>>Yes, rather. That seems live a very Uriel thing to do.<<

I'm glad you like this.

>>And I love the image of tiny sins like tiny mittens on strings, so as not to be lost (although on a religious/spiritual level, I hate it).<<

Children can be oddly determined about this. Some of them take their childhood sins far more seriously than many adult do with graver violations. The image was just there.

The impression I get in this cosmology is that while God is very forgiving and open-minded, humans are far more inclined to get hung up on sins and rules and other arbitrary ideas. So God tries to provide ways for them to work through their issues that will make sense to them. Purgatory, therefore, is not a punishment but a coping mechanism.
cadenzamuse

Re: Thank you!

cadenzamuse

December 12 2012, 00:38:27 UTC 8 years ago

The impression I get in this cosmology is that while God is very forgiving and open-minded, humans are far more inclined to get hung up on sins and rules and other arbitrary ideas.

I would say that is definitely true of my experience of God in our universe. We do get stuck rather easily.

So God tries to provide ways for them to work through their issues that will make sense to them.

God is a consummate therapist.

Purgatory, therefore, is not a punishment but a coping mechanism.

LOVE that.
ysabetwordsmith

Re: Thank you!

ysabetwordsmith

December 12 2012, 01:17:04 UTC 8 years ago

>>I would say that is definitely true of my experience of God in our universe. We do get stuck rather easily.<<

Sooth.

>>God is a consummate therapist.<<

I've come across that interpretation in a few other places, but not a lot. You'd think it would come up more, as much as people pour their hearts out in prayer.

>>LOVE that.<<

Yay! In this series, I look for ways to weave in established bits of religion and cosmology, while tilting them in a slightly different direction.