Thank You for Your Service©

The Lord called and young 

     visionaries answered 

          hearts spilling over hope 

               energy in a rising tide

Raised a voice for the good empowered

     community practiced hospitality

          absorbed hostility showed a path

               for a better world

Old now in touch with

     a different reality 

          vision yet diminished capacities

               lonely in the crowd haunted with

                    was it worth it

Thirsty for a welcoming word from

     someone who remembers the alleys and knows

          how to say thank you

Enter stage left

     a pastor unhindered by full time

          duties sets out to feed grateful hearts

               hear bygone joys and troubled 

                    dispositions offer clues for clearer paths 

Annuitant Visitor upspirited returns home

     more visits to superannuated 

          servants later

In cities hustle in unfurnished plains

     beyond the mountains

The good and faithful will be

     warmed by the smile and hear

Thank you for your service

     on behalf of a

          grateful larger church

*The poem was inspired by a trip I took with my wife, Maurine, to visit retired clergy and/or their spouses in western Nebraska. We traveled over 1100 miles in that visit and visited 12 folks. Maurine, a retired clergyperson herself, is one of many Annuitant Visitors whose mission is to check-in annually with the over 6,000 retired clergy in the UCC, to listen and say thank you.