Andrew

Eugène Delacroix, The Unmade Bed, 1827

So young, so strong, so holy

To be stolen by the shade.

Some saints belong to Heaven

Too fiercely to have stayed.

This is not the end, not hardly,

Though the man has traveled on.

For Who we see through a glass darkly,

He has kissed in the light of dawn.

Four little joys he left behind him

To walk the road he built while they slept.

The fight he fought was fought for them.

He’s fighting still, watching every little step.

Aubrey, would you please tell them

That there’s a reason why?

Aubrey, can you believe it?

You look even better from the sky.

This is not the end, not hardly,

Though the man has traveled on.

For Who we see through a glass darkly,

He has kissed in the light of dawn.

The light that flicked for a moment

Was a blaze of glory he outgrew.

It warms me even to the present.

Won’t you wait for me, Andrew?

Dedication: To Andrew, who lived his short life to the fullness of God’s glory.