222/365 : when you go to the temple to pray

when you go to the temple to pray
do not bring your Sunday best--
the eternal flame
asks nothing of clothing

when you go to the temple to pray
take off all your jewelry
let down your hair
pull off your boots one thrust at a time

your socks, let them fling from your fingers
into the pile of your jacket
your sweater, your scarf, your bra
slither out of your undergarments
stand in the middle of the dust storm
looking up at the light, alone

let your body's round curves
be your devotion
nothing half-hearted
nothing in hiding

stand wordless and warmed
only by the fire of love
as your fingers, frigid and frail
come close to your heart's center

let your prayer be a silent naked surrender
let your eyes gaze steady upward
toward the center
here, here
shiver
whisper