By Orlando Ricardo Menes

We cannot buy it in bulk at Trader Joe’s,
Swap it for gold, or hoard shares of Grace, Inc.,
To hedge against bad luck. We acquire it
Without contract, promissory notes, or IOUs,
Neither codicils nor fine print. We gather
Grace safe from litigation or severance,
And though we might breach the strictures of creed,
It cannot be forfeited or suspended. Rather,
Grace is asymmetric, parabolic, skewed to love,
Immanent and absolute, but also unpredictable
As quantum particles, both here and there,
Both full and empty, so it might arrive
Inopportunely and thus slip under hope,
Upsetting the earnest prayer, teasing our faith,
Like some rain bands, copious cumuli,
That appear astray, unbidden, in stagnant skies
To drench at last the drought-scourged earth.

Poet Bio

Peruvian-born Cuban poet, editor, and translator Orlando Ricardo Menes immigrated to Miami with his family at age 10. He earned a BA and an MA at the University of Florida and a PhD at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Menes is the recipient of a fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts. A professor at the University of Notre Dame since 2000, he lives in northern Indiana. In his poems, Menes explores themes of identity, family, faith, and sustenance. See More By This Poet