After the Storm, We Begin Again

by Sarah Skinner, 2025

After the storm, we begin again.

the water roared

but so did love

the storm found me

but I found your hand

already reaching

some of us paint in watercolor

and your love felt like that—

you took the rain,

the tears from our cheeks,

and painted flowers.

the Holy One does that, you know—

with beauty spun after stormlight.

blessed are the artists

crafting love:  

taking broken glass

and making beauty,

taking the tangled strings inside of us

and weaving love on a loom.

Some work with fire and felt,

and isn’t that the truest metaphor?

Not a burning down—

but burning, bright promise

held in open hands,  

a warmth that does not consume,

but creates.

I looked around a year ago

and saw broken things—

but if you look through the lens of love,

you’ll see beauty.

the flood left us with mud,

and the holy one's hands

took to the wheel—

making and mending.

Come, beloved artists,

let's make something new.  

The Holy One does that, too.

Remembering Hurricane Helene  

Remembering the outpouring of love that followed