Prattville, Alabama

Let the Methodist New Year Begin!  In fact, let the new year begin with fireworks. That's one way of thinking about the Cross and Flame: as a fire cracker, an explosion of the spirit, a celebration of freedom in Christ. But, unlike a firecracker, this flame burns forever, just as the love of God and the love of  man, her man, burns forever. To make that clear, she has borrowed a poem by Elizabeth Barrett Browning: "I shall but love thee better after death." Memory Gardens. [2013]

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
I love thee to the depth and breadth and height
My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight
For the ends of Being and ideal Grace.
I love thee to the level of everyday's
Most quiet need, by sun and candle-light.
I love thee freely, as men strive for Right;
I love thee purely, as they turn from Praise.
I love thee with a passion put to use
In my old griefs, and with my childhood's faith.
I love thee with a love I seemed to lose
With my lost saints, -- I love thee with the breath,
Smiles, tears, of all my life! -- and, if God choose,
I shall but love thee better after death.