The flame of a torch

The flame of a torch                                                                                        
 
My Lord is leading me by example
and persuasion inexorably into silence.
 
What could I ever pray aloud
that God doesn’t already know?
 
What could my false self ever tell that isn’t a lie?
What advice could I give not born of ignorance?
 
What opinions could I offer others
that aren’t manipulative and self-centered?
 
Doesn’t silence speak volumes anyway?
Is not a smile and embrace,
 
a hand on the shoulder,
a deep look into the eyes
 
more communicative than the spoken word?
And what words ever directly
 
come from the inarticulate heart     
rather than the ever calculating head?     
 
O child of God, trade in your words for the ability
to whisper and crackle like the flame of a torch.