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　The Bā-Bēatitude of a Smile

Early one morning in a quiet place,
God beheld the babe’s smiling face.

So enchanted was God by the smile,
God paused and tarried there a while.
Within the smiling face God basks
And babababeling asks,
　“Just who are you?”
　“Not one, not two,”
Babababbleling the babe replies.

　“Are you girl, are you boy?”
　“I am both, I am joy.”

　“Who’s more happy, you or I?”
　“The wind says me; you, the sky.”

“If your smile one fathoms full,
What deep-down will one see?”
“Thee! in sheer joy, in exultation,
In awe and adoration, O! Thee!”

*          *          *

Note: There is, in the Chinese language, a beautiful character, most pleasing to the eye, called Ling: 靈. And, in one tradition, a Ling Child is the reincarnation of the Enlightened One. The character líng (靈) may be variously translated as: mysterious; divine, spirit; intelligence; spirit, elf; nimble, clever; sharp. This poem could also be called The Smile of a Ling Child (靈童的笑容).

　A reverie . . . hush, hush . . . mais oui,
　By yours truly, God, Bā-Bē, and HyC

This poem, one of 81, appears in my new book, The Logic of Rhyme, available now on Amazon.