In Matthew Kohut’s “Letter to St. John of the Cross”, nine concise lines are illuminated with unity and oneness, to the serene canticle of “i dissolving”. In this truly beautiful poem of glittering and solemn imagery, Matthew presents readers with a mystical night, in which all things, all of us, are together, one unified voice in the moonlit dark, wild seeds to be scattered afield in the golden light of dawn. Matthew told The Dewdrop his poem plays with the theme of finding meaning in surprising places.
Letter to St. John of the Cross
On this dark night all souls are one
a tree falls in the woods the sound of i dissolving
seekers of comfort from the dark night of all souls
let’s spend the night together listening to droning guitars
that jangle memories of plainsong our ancestors chanted
many voices into one in stone cathedrals across an ocean
dreaming of escape from the dark night of i
a choir of trees will fall and dissolve before
we scatter like seeds on the wind at morning’s light
Matthew Kohut
Matthew Kohut has worked as a writer, teacher, and musician for thirty years. His poetry has been published in Wild Roof Journal, The Dewdrop, Leaping Clear, Ekphrastic Review, and two anthologies by Beautiful Cadaver Press. He is the co-author of two books of nonfiction, and his work focuses on helping people communicate more effectively in high-stakes settings. Social media: @mpkohut on Instagram, @matthew_kohut on Twitter, and @matthewkohut on Post.