Annunciation to the Shepherds, by Gail Peck

Annunciation to the Shepherds, by Taddeo Gaddi (Italy), fresco, church of Santa Croce, Florence. circa 1330.

Annunciation to the Shepherds
                                                                                            
And what would you do
if an angel appeared
in the sky, shrouded by a cloud?
Would you believe this heavenly messenger
who’s announced the child of God
has been born of a virgin in a stable?
 
If trees can be nourished by rock,
cannot this, too, be true?
The sheep do not wake,
the dog howls with fear.
 
One shepherd has covered his face,
the other reaches, one palm open
as if to receive a gift.
 
To witness wings and flight
when darkness hovers,
when you’ve been dreaming,
visions swirling, a lamb next to a beast
who does not stir.

Gail Peck

This poem was written as part of the surprise ekphrastic Christmas challenge.
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Gail Peck is the author of eight books of poetry. The Braided Light won the Leana Shull Contest for 2015. Poems and essays have appeared in Southern Review, Nimrod, Greensboro Review, Brevity, Connotation Press, Comstock, Stone Voices, and elsewhere.  Her poems have been nominated for a Pushcart, and her essay “Child Waiting” was cited as a notable forBest American Essays, 2013. ​