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With arms stretched,

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hands clasped

toward the sky, faith has entered his cold eyes

like a dog dying, losing its connection.

              Facing the guilt of a thousand sinners, he feels

the cracking of his heart, leans on the shoulder of his

hardest enemy and longest friend, touching

his dead lover as though death were a good thing,

a place of unearthly hope.

              He has made up his mind to let the axe fall

and let his guilt be finally buried

along with the light he sought to master.

He asks his friend to do the deed, to free him

like her who surrendered to spiritual trust.

              And his black coat falls, his pale complexion

is beautiful, flushed on such a threshold.

He bows his head, waiting like one

whose purity has been restored, waiting

with brave anticipation.

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Copyright © 1998 by Allison Grayhurst

amazon.com/author/allisongrayhurst

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Published in “DogStar Poetry Zine” November 2015

http://dogstarpoetry.blogspot.ca/2015/11/with-arms-stretched-poem-by-allison.html

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Published in “Green King Poems and Poetry Zine” November 2015

http://greenkinglit.blogspot.ca/2015/11/with-arms-outstretched-poem-by-allison.html

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.You can listen to the poem by clicking below:

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“Allison Grayhurst intertwines a potent spirituality throughout her work so that each poem is not simply a statement or observation, but a revelation that demands the reader’s personal involvement. Grayhurst’s poetic genius is profound and evident. Her voice is uniquely authentic, undeniable in its dignified vulnerability as it is in its significance,” Kyp Harness, singer/songwriter, author.

“Allison Grayhurst’s poems are like cathedrals witnessing and articulating in unflinching graphic detail the gritty angst and grief of life, while taking it to rare clarity, calm and comfort. Grayhurst’s work is haunting, majestic and cleansing, often leaving one breathless in the wake of its intelligence, hope, faith and love amidst the muck of life. Many of Allison Grayhurst’s poems are simply masterpieces. Grayhurst’s poetry is a lighthouse of intelligent honour… indeed, intelligence rips through her work like white water,” Taylor Jane Green, Registered Spiritual Psychotherapist and author.

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Review of The Longing To Be: 

“The contents of Allison Grayhurst’s book The Longing To Be are both personal and universal and are described in such thematic and golden terms that one can see that a lot of thought has gone into each line. The poems are written mostly in free verse throughout, with both rhythm and soul weaved into them. For some poems, the layout seems experimental, and there is definitely a playfulness in the way that the words and verses fall onto the page. Others do conform to a “norm”, whatever that is. All are dramatic and thoughtful. These are layered poems with new horizons presented to the reader in every re-read. The effect is to keep things fresh with poems that constantly surprise in spite, and because of, the number of times being read. I thoroughly recommend The Longing To Be as a poetry book to study carefully and cherish far into the future,” poet Brian Shirra.

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