I sit on my South Carolina porch

somewhere between Epiphany and MLK

and discuss various tenets of religion with my oldest son

~ essentially the ones I no longer believe ~

our conversation drifts to the birth of his daughter

and the death of my dad

He and his wife learned they were pregnant on the same day my dad died

the circle of life

my son came to visit me on this MLK weekend

he came to build me a raised bed

a place for me to sow seeds

new life

he brought his beautiful almost three year old daughter

she has my dad’s eyes, his round face, his gentle spirit,

his sense of humor

but my dad came to visit too

yes, he died in 2016

but he came to me in a dream over this MLK weekend

it was fleeting

but his face was healthy, his eyes sparkled,

his smile – sweet and tender

hmmm…

maybe I do believe in resurrection after all

and certainly… the miracle of every birth