Prayer following the inauguration

At This Significant Moment
(To These Five Things I Give Honor)

At this significant moment,
When frost hardens the furrows,
Granaries are all but empty,
And sons and daughters tarry beyond the hill in arms,

At this significant moment,
When the snowy field is surveyed by a new worker,
An unprecedented hand grips the plow,
And seeds of change shake in the basket,

At this significant moment,
When weight shifts anxiously from foot to foot,
Ruddy cheeks shiver,
And lips blow on knuckles like dice for good luck,

Let me in my way give honor to five things.

First, to Justice:
That wrongs past and wrongs current be set right,
That all may share fairly and equally in the harvest,
And that poor policies may be like nourishing soil for better ones,

Second, to Prudence:
That this new sower may judge wisely the stars for planting,
That we may hold no unrealistic expectations,
Nor make a savior of the man.

Third, to Fortune:
That the new crop may not bring mere change,
But that it may be change for the better,
And change for the best.

Fourth, to War:
That frenzied wrath may calm,
That enemies may be reconciled,
And that no death may be in vain.

Fifth, to Peace:
That whatever road be taken,
Our sons and daughters may follow it home one day soon,
And by the same road too may fare the safety of all the world's citizens.

At this significant moment,
As the new worker opens the door of the shed,
To these five things I give honor,
And we shall have these, the right tools for the job.

At this significant moment,
As the yoke is placed on the oxen,
To these five things I give honor,
And they will haul us through the difficult ground.

At this significant moment,
As my brow raises to the horizon,
To these five things I give honor,
And my hands know their role in the season of planting.