A Haven of Peace

This poem was promoted by a recent visit to Winchester where on a very hot day we found St Lawrence Church open! So many churches in England are closed except for Sunday services, so it was a delight and a joy to enter and sit for a while. In a busy world, I think we all enjoyed the chance of a moment to pause and take stock. I know it is fashionable to mock the idea that buildings contain a imprint of their past, but I do believe it is so, especially where worship and prayer have been part of the building for so many centuries. It is indeed, or was for us, a haven of peace.

A Haven of Peace

Outside the Cathedral, down side street,
Away from the bustle of tourist’s feet,
Once a pilgrim route along this way,
They came to venerate St Swithun’s day;
St Lawrence Church, so cool and quiet:
Away from heat of the harsh sunlight;
The Normans built it, many years ago,
But destroyed by fire, a time of woe;
Rebuilt again, risen from ashes anew:
A voice calling, come in, faithful few,
And we enter, and come, sit down;
When Winchester was but a town,
Stone was laid on stone, in prayer,
For refreshment of the spirit here;
Prayer of ages enfolded in its stones,
For pilgrims to St Swithun’s bones;
Story-keepers of many past years,
And of all future hopes and fears;
Witness to all who walk this way,
And sit in peace, or come to pray.