“A Warm Wisdom” (poem René van Nieuwkuijk)

In February, René van Nieuwkuijk attended our departure ceremony for pilgrims at sunrise. At sunset he participated in the Sunset March , at the end of our route on the bridge the Crossing. “Suddenly I realized that in Nijmegen we have both a morning and an evening ritual (and an annual one).”

A Warm Wisdom

It’s that red-gold dawn
that light caresses along the highest arches
Silver streaks drawing through the earliest dust
awakening sacred silence from an eternal silence
The tide of the earliest pilgrims
Wanderlustige Kleine Luyden who won the lauds
listen to it as if it were a hot breakfast
sharing their judgement with stories from the book
of seekers of a soul under the sun

It’s that standing still together, by walking
where the Sunset March sets the tone, the Crossing
Lights Crossing Us, As Signs Of Life
for a moment to coincide with those who fell
Young lads, driven by fire and heroism
dying away, in a Waal full of flowing blood;
This daily rite, about flows of connection
receive from each other by giving

It’s that ritual rhythm that excites me
about sea sons daughters, suns moons
Always new life in the old town
ascending with the returning tides
Breathe lightly, in and out and ebb and flow
Two, Three, Four Day Lives Walk
filled with soul and timeless light

René van Nieuwkuijk
February 6, 2023