Michigan Boulevard, Chicago
Sr. Miriam of the Holy Spirit, O.C.D.
(Jessica Powers, 1932)
There is a star above this street for me.
Hither I came of old,
bearing my myrrh and frankincense and gold.
Hunger and loneliness and poverty
I brought for their delight
once in my youth upon a snowy night.
I did not follow to the inmost place
where the Child lay asleep.
It was too splendid; the light dripped too deep.
I saw the tears upon the Virgin’s face.
I gave my gifts to her,
and the night ended in a golden blur.
Powers, J 1999, The Selected Poetry of Jessica Powers, ICS Publications, Washington DC.
About our featured image: The Adoration of the Magi by Dutch artist Leonaert Bramer (1596–1674) is an oil on oak panel on view at the Detroit Institute of Arts. Curators date the work between 1630 and 1635. The gallery label states, “Like many seventeenth-century artists, Leonaert Bramer traveled to Italy, where he became acquainted not only with the art of the Italians but also with the art of other Dutch artists working there. In this dramatically illuminated nocturnal scene, Bramer intensifies the drama and the visionary quality through a rough application of paint and the nervous, flickering reflections of light. In the pronounced treatment of light and dark, the mood, and the choice of costumes, one may detect Rembrandt’s influence, while the foliage and the rendering of the two angels are close to the art of Lastman.”
Learn more about this artwork from the Detroit Institute of Arts
Carmelite Quotes 
This is exactly how I feel at Christmas this year, in particular. And this is my favourite Magi painting too. Many thanks!