Synkroniciti is excited to welcome back poet, musician and visual artist Carla Hartsfield, Texan by birth and residing in Canada, with “Latticework,” a poem about spiritual healing and recovery. “In St. George’s, the Canon/ invites us to join her in silence./ I stand, humbled,/ seeking solace, my years/ of negative religious conditioning/ like sadistic clouds, darkening.”
Unfortunately, many people use religion as a cover for abuse and entire communities are based on herding those who don’t conform to rigid patriarchal norms, demeaning them for daring to be who they are. This turns houses of worship from sanctuaries to places of conflict and wounding. Taking a cue from Canadian poet Lorna Crozier and her poem “The Language of Angels,” Carla shows us that this doesn’t have to be the case if quiet, reverent places are cultivated. Is this not one of the chief purposes of prayer? “Why shouldn’t the angels remain silent?/ Or the reverends, as they prepare/ for communion. The spiritual realm/ is more seductive than any sermon,/ each rector’s gentle homily/ a far cry from hellfire preaching—”
Carla’s masterful use of sibilants creates a soft and gentle music that, coupled with her open vulnerability, calms us and allows us to explore our feelings about silence and religion. Whatever your beliefs, you can celebrate the freedom Carla has found. Perhaps you can find that comforting silence within your experience of humanity.
Read “Latticework” in Synkroniciti’s “Recovery” issue, available for purchase here: https://synkroniciti.com/the-magazine/purchase-individual-issues/.
Carla Hartsfield is a classically trained pianist, poet, singer-songwriter and visual artist. She has published three chapbooks and three volumes of poetry, the most recent with Brick Books, titled YOUR LAST DAY ON EARTH. Carla’s books have been nominated for prizes from the League of Canadian Poets and the Writer’s Trust of Canada. You can find her original music on Apple and Spotify.