All Along
A Poem by Kimberly Phinney
For B.P.
First, I stop to pray
right here,
over these lines,
so these words hold you
and He molds you just as you are,
right now, into the beautiful
masterpiece He meant for you
all along.
Yes, all along…
in His gardens,
you were a moonflower,
blooming in the darkest of nights.
And you were a snowdrop,
blooming up through the frost—
even in the frigid winters that lasted
far too long.
Yes, all along…
in His heavens,
you were a single polar star,
born to rise and shine
your love and goodness like
a mercy of light over all
who needed her glow-lit path
to survive their own dark night
of the soul.
Yes, all along…
in His time,
it was you who was born
to birth so many beautiful things
with every bit of yourself:
your eyes, your hands,
your heart, your mind,
your words—
in spite of the falls,
in spite of all
that’s been done to you,
in spite of the graves
that tried to bury you.
Yes, all along…
in His hands,
you were made whole and holy.
You were drawn and chosen—
then set apart—
for the sacred good
that is yours to impart.
Kimberly Phinney is a writer, professor, and counselor. She’s been published in Christianity Today, Ekstasis, Fathom, Humana Obscura, Calla Press, and more. She is founder of www.TheWayBack2Ourselves.com. Her poem “Exalted Ground” was nominated for the Pushcart Prize in 2024 with The Dewdrop. Her poem “An Ode to Hard Dark Nights” won the Audience Choice Award in the Bright Wings Poetry Contest with Ekstasis and Makers and Mystics in 2024. And her small collection of poetry from Of Wings and Dirt won runner up in Fathom Magazine’s Poetry Contest in 2023. A doctoral candidate in community care and counseling, Kimberly holds an M.Ed. in English and studied at Goddard’s Creative Writing MFA program. She was featured on Good Morning America for a national award and teaching through critical illness. Her poetry collection, Of Wings and Dirt, was a bestseller on the Amazon Charts in 2024 for several months. Her second book of poetry, Exalted Ground: Poems of Praise and Lament for the Living, is out now.
