Hector

The trembling hands . . . 

his trembling hands

exist somehow separate

from him

yet give him away

this man of kind eyes

calm voice

competent presentation

a man composed –

so composed he could be

speaking of the weather

he could be – but he isn’t

But those hands –

their quaking never stops

They give him away

O Lord, where to look?

Everywhere my eyes are drawn

to his trembling hands

like Jesus’ marks

his trembling hands

are the evidence

they give him away

they give us away

________________________

Written in 2005 in Colombia, SA, while on a delegation with Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT).  Listening to a man named Hector describe the impact of his country's violence on his life and the life of his family, I am struck by his hands, which continuously shake, betraying the seeming calm of his voice, mirroring the violence of his words.