I wonder
if you ever missed it,
the woodwork, I mean.
Healing and pronouncing parables
are all very important
but what about having a day off
from all those sinners?
Didn’t you ever wish for a day
spent in the workshop
with Joseph
some oak
and some shavings?
I’ve seen the pictures
little curved saws
bow drills
mallets
and they look intriguing
to a Canada-Tired
Craftsman-wielding
powertool buyer
who always wants
one more.
Did you get sick of it?
All the miracles you performed
just to show people who you were
just to open eyes to the shape
size color flavor
of forgivenenss
of life
just to help them savor
the gift they had been given by
their Father
the one who
cares about
their lives
on earth
in carpenters’ shops
fishing boats
and toll booths?
I wonder
if you wished you could
just sit
and peel a willow
whittling away
with Simon Peter
and talking tilapia.
Come quickly:
I have willows aplenty
lots of time
and an inclination
to go fishing,
having already
been caught
and released.
—Curt Gesch
