The Moon Goes Dark

The moon goes dark
and with leaden feet
I trod the path to Kuan Yin
where I will pray for the suffering
of the people of Haiti.
But before I pray, I will walk through the woods
and I will hate suffering
and I will bargain with suffering
and I will let suffering see
how my heart breaks with it all,
hoping this will convince suffering
to stop.
It doesn't.
So I go to Kuan Yin
and I ask her to
tend to the suffering,
and I tell her I am grateful
that this is her job, not mine
and that I am human, not a Goddess.
The suffering will be lifted from my shoulders
and I will walk home in the gray rain
and wait for the returning moon,
for the return of spring.