Contentment in Dissonance
J. Arden McCracken
Striding into your house
I notice that
your methodologies and
philosophies clash with mine.
Like a gong
their sound waves flow
over me,
at times,
rattling my teeth
and piercing my eardrums.
I might scream
in response to the dissonant tones,
covering my ears with my hands,
but
instead,
I choose to wait,
in peace and
contentment,
studying the harmonics
of your song;
leaning into your song,
open hands
receiving your song
in a posture of loving
you.
radical hope
J. Arden McCracken
Emily once said
that “hope is the thing with feathers
that perches in the soul,”
But I have no need
for a hope like
a “thing with feathers”
Its hollow bones snap at the slightest pressure;
so easily crushed in the world’s rough fist.
I need durable, sturdy, resilient hope;
a rock congealed in the forges of earth:
diamond hard,
enduring,
indestructible.
A sixties radical hope
that stands up to protest injustice
then suffers the dogs and water cannons of oppression
and stands up again.
I don’t need hope to “perch in my soul”;
precariously situated so the slightest
wind can sweep it away.
I need a radical hope
that inhabits my entire soul
and puts down deep roots
no gale could displace.
Radical hope
is not the kind that nests in the spring
and is gone in the winter;
migratory, based on how the wind blows.
It’s not a downy comfort
to warm our frosty hearts
in time of darkness.
Radical hope
is a cornerstone
bought with the blood of the Holy One;
a strong tower in time of need,
a staging site from which I participate
in his occupations,
a real reason for living.
Radical hope is the thing with teeth
that bites into the soul and will not let go.
J. Arden McCracken is a professor at Indiana Wesleyan University specializing in Children's Literature and literacy. He earned his Ph.D. from The Ohio State University and previously taught at Seoul Foreign School in South Korea. His research focuses on home libraries, parental involvement, and early literary experiences. He helped provide 40 Little Free Libraries in Grant County, Indiana and promotes literacy through recorded read-alouds. Passionate about fostering reading development, he combines academic expertise with community initiatives to support children's literacy in the U.S. and abroad.