Ode To Creeping Jesus
When you were a child and you still believed in Make-Believe…
All you knew was “Gentle Jesus, meek and mild…”
You’d never seen, or even heard about Creeping Jesus,
God of the gutter, High Priest of the street,
Archetype of Aqualung!
But now you’re grown and you know him, oh so well;
And you understand that he and his kind
Are the eyes and ears of the very gods themselves,
So beware the silent curse of these unkempt avatars of the downtrodden,
Which brings certain justice to all who transgress against
Zeus’ most sacred laws of hospitality,
While their blessings bring joy and harmony upon their benefactors.
Few today understand how essential it is
To earn the blessings of these mendicant godlings,
Whose insight penetrates to the very hearts of men,
Who see what others refuse to look at, and who know the truth:
That the charity which eases your conscience
When the sight of their poverty becomes more than you can bear,
Prompting unwonted generosity and unbidden tears,
Is a poison, potent though slow-acting,
Which devours the soul and leaves the body an empty husk…
So don’t expect gratitude from a beggar if you throw him a dime;
He is your scapegoat, and in paying the price for your sins,
He replaces your conscience to assuage your guilt.
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