Vincent set sail rich in mind,
Schooled in the sciences,
Brimming with faith;
What trials he met, what pirates took from him
Was replenished with stores
Of faith refined as gold;
What masters bought him – a chemist bent
On finding life’s elixir stone;
A desert farmer fled from faith –
Saw in him the way of grace
Turning death and trials to
The life of sacrifice.
And once returned – freed, restored,
His name cleared, wealth at his feet –
He laid it down,
Schooled now in the science of
The Spirit’s fire, pure gold
Found now in the sacrifice.
The Consolations of Writing 