My Cathedral

~one of my favorite places to go--the cottonwoods south of the place~

Sweetest days of childhood, playing in the deep woods,

Stomping through the creek and feeling oh-so-much alive.

We`re camping in the forest, we join the cricket chorus,

Hum our songs of gratitude around a crackling fire.

Out here in the stillness, I found my house of worship

With column trees and canopy of stars, here in my cathedral.

It was beneath the blue skies, I ran down to be baptized,

I felt the river wash me clean and dried beneath the sun.

To this day believing I`m wide awake or dreaming,

Scan the ancient sky and understand where I belong.

Cause out here in the stillness, I find my house of worship

With column trees and canopy of stars, here in my cathedral.

This is where I find my soul, out where holy men of old

First knelt in soil and thanked You for the rain.

Wrote the songs that filled the air, harold angels sang their prayer,

Out beneath your darling constellations.

Let me off and wander, Robin song and thunder,

Surrounding me with stained glass leaves that change with every breeze.

Out here in the stillness, I find my house of worship

With column trees and canopy of stars, here in my cathedral.

--Chris Rice