poems

walk down the street
pick up groceries
hit an early showing
get into the bookstore
buy some birdseed
grab a cup of coffee
find a sandwich shop
head back to the house
kiss my wife on the lips
watch the five o’clock news
tune into some really good jazz
a quick shower before bed
one chapter to put me to sleep

Sundays are good to me now
never knew what I was missing

I hear too many church people
talk about having faith
but they drive new Cadillacs
with full tanks of gas and eat
lunch in downtown cafes

waking in perfect health
next to your darling
to go to a job you love
that keeps your bank accounts
in the black
sounds suspiciously like…
something else.

you don-t need faith
if the lights come on
after flicking the switch
or if your children rest
comfortably in their beds
at night

in my experience

faith is barreling down
the interstate
at eighty-five miles per hour
without the brakes
in a car barely clinging
to its metal

it-s giving up
your wristwatch
to the offering plate
because the money is gone
and you have no other
sacrifice for the Lord

so don-t talk to me about faith
until you have tangled with tigers
and bear-hugged a grizzly enough
to leave a few scars on your souls

I-ll listen to a man
talk about faith
when it is evident
that faith is
all he has

God has a plan
a reason for being

there is a plan for
lovers
killers too
the lonely have one
but they must do it alone
the plan has few
winners and many losers

Christ was given a plan
John the Baptist
Caesar
Hitler
Charlie Mason

plans are not equal
we might work the same job
listen to the same music
eat at the same restaurant
love the same woman
but you & I are going
in different directions
and if our paths never cross again
it was nice knowing you