Pray, State Legislature

Summer Prayer For the Ohio State Legislature

Lord, give me strength to lay down the fight,
To drive away from my load unencumbered
To my hallowed summer retreat
And enjoy my well-earned holiday
With those closest to me.

Father, let not the specters of those now afflicted
And the souls of those long cold
Frequent my daily thoughts
And remind me of my duly sworn promises
To uphold the public good.

As my suffering Southern contingent 
Sweats through another sweltering, humid summer
Accentuated by the overflow of casualties
And mournful cries of ruined mothers,
Pray I can utter, "This fall we will bring them justice."

As Thy kingdom has yet come and Thy will is not yet done
In the depressed, poisoned poverty fields of Appalachia,
Where overdosed addicts and hepatitis victims free roam,
Make me comprehend that my thorough, immediate action
Is never really expected in this Land of Lost Hopes and Promises.

And, Father, forgive my tabled trespasses and lobbied transgressions,
For I am serving my closest appointed interests of State to earn my daily bread.
Please lead me not into temptation to close my eyes on the distant poor
And cast them to visions of opening my carefully measured resources
To buckeye kingdoms of greater population and political influence.

Finally, Lord, help restore unto me my power and glory
When my rest is done and new assemblage has come.
After the much-debated pain clinics have run amuck
And heavily fertilized hilly grounds with their lawless carnage 
In the name of this crippling State-sponsored suicide.