Iona: On Dun-I
Across the sound,
Sentinel, stood Mull,
Softened by a transient haze.
Above us
A struggling sun
Would occasionally
Bludgeon its way through the mist
And set the Abbey roofs ablaze.
We,
Pilgrims for a day,
Upon Dun-I
Re-heard the story
Of Christ's Transfiguration:
Another mound,
Another time:
Yet suddenly that mystery
Imbued my whole being
With inner illumination.
My eyes
Were seared with tears
Flooding from the deep recesses
Of my soul.
I longed to cry
"Build, build a cairn
As a commemoration."
"Commemorating what?"
I asked myself.
A shadowlands sense
Of the transcendent?
Alas I was not bold
Enough
To let myself cry out.
I let the moment pass
And with it
The sense of God resplendent
As I fought
For composure
And my pride-bound self-control.
Original introductory remarks in February 2014
From Oran's Chapel on the foreshore of Iona, we move to the highest point of the Island and, though not very high (barely perceptible behind the Abbey building in the watercolour), it has been significant as a place of encounter for some and indeed for us. Today being the day many churches celebrate the mystery of the Transfiguration, this feels an appropriately timed post. (There is always a second celebration on August 6th).
Other poems about Iona can be found in the Iona Collection which can be accessed from the pastel icon of the village on Iona in the right hand column of this blog
