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Northshore Unitarian Universalist Church
A liberal, welcoming congregation serving the North Shore of Massachusetts since 1966

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E5 Bell of Silent Wisdom

Ode to The Bell

Bell of silent wisdom,
Quietly standing guard at the edge of the forest,
Did you signal to other gatherings,
At another clearing,
In another time?
Did you ring loudly from the top of a steeple?

But now you are
Quietly standing guard
With tall silent trees as your fellow sentries.

Sometimes
Active noisier times do return.
Loud laughing children climb all over you
As they would a wise indulgent grandfather.

But,
Always you are
Quietly standing guard at the edge of the forest.

—Peter VanDeBogert

(presumably delivered at the dedication of the bell in the 1970s)