48″ x 30″ acrylic on canvas, inspired by:

The Theater of Freedom by Hafiz

“In my divine studio

What I have been working on is this:

Painting the Truth,

Revealing

A more realistic picture of God,

Tearing down the cruel walls

That separate you from the tenderness of Fire.

Someone must be withholding

The crucial lines

In all the stories you have heard of our

Friend,

For there is still too much fear

And pallor upon your cheeks,

And I rarely see you

In the marvelous Theater of Freedom.

Hafiz knows

You could not describe him

Even if we sat side by side on a caravan

For years,

Even if we slept close in my desert tent

And you became familiar

With the holy scent

That the sun and my Master leave

Whenever they visit me,

For something has happened

To your youthful passions,

That great fuel

You once had to defend yourself

Against becoming tamed.

And your eyes now often tell me

That your once vital talent to extract joy

From the air

Has fallen into a sleep.

All that you could ever say of me

Can only describe my camel’s tail-

And that course hair

That is barely visible sometimes

On the left side of the moon’s nose.

In my divine studio

Where I am sitting right now

Crafting your heart, lyre

And flute,

I long for the day when you will join me

In knowing

The extraordinary humor

And all the enchanting realities

Of the infinite performances

Of

God.”

-Hafiz