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By Ryan Keating

Break the porch and burn the table
Let water wash over this temple

And drain from me like residue the sense
That I am not at home on earth

As it is. In heaven on its way down
Belonging feels like a moving target

A reentry window receding
As the world turns to close a door

I am becoming as much as seeking
A place to rest and drink lemonade

With other pilgrims on the front steps
No longer running toward the fire.

Ryan Keating is a graduate of Biola University and Yale Divinity School. He is a pastor, wine maker, and coffee roaster on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus. His writing can be found in publications such as Ekstasis Magazine, Christian Century, Saint Katherine Review, Agape Review, and Miras Dergi, where he is a regular contributor in English and Turkish.