Old Woman's Night Blessing, Connemara

Warm as an Irish shawl the years
around me, and so tonight before I sleep
I pray the preservation of this house
till morning. May I wake to find
my chair, the books and food I need,
all patient work that brings me joy.

May I receive some signal gift
before once more the darkness falls,
some poet's words a tune
to hum against the night.

Let stillness and the gathering dark
keep safe the roof and beams
of this loved house, these sheltering walls,
the doors and shuttered windows,
rooms that hold my memories, and me.

~ Jeanne Lohmann