With the other sisters Thérèse progressed
In prayer from the choir, holy hymns
In her mouth, to the refectory
All silent there as the sisters ate
Stark food and herbs from the garden--
Root vegetables, sorrel for steaming soup, figs
to purge their appetites
from excess or gourmet tastes
from the world outside.
privation was on the menu, no meat
(unless sick), no eggs (in Lent)
no eating between meals
with each bite sisters had to add
a sop of bread reminding them
of Christ, the Bread of Life
the wooden spoons and
wooden bowls evoked Christ's
Cross, the gall and vinegar.
St Thérèse transcended the harsh
diet in the refectory by savouring snow
flakes and indulging in sunsets.
Best of all she found sweetness
and plenty in the Viaticum
an angel brought to her
only a few hours before she
was wrapped in Christ's arms
for the marriage feast in heaven.
St. Thérèse and the Carmel Refectory
BY
Philip C. Kolin is Distinguished Professor of English Emeritus at the University of Southern Mississippi, a scholar and poet whose work listens closely to the human heart. Across more than forty books — from studies of Shakespeare and Tennessee Williams to finely wrought collections of poetry — he traces the places where language becomes prayer, witness, and healing. His poetry moves through themes of faith, justice, and the fragile beauty of the American South, offering readers a voice attentive to mystery and alive to the world’s quiet revelations.