Pass the Jesus, Please

June 9, 2015
by Michael
comments 42
Christ / Poetry

Jesus
is a condiment
you can sprinkle
onto any moment,
to give it life.
This is, I think,
his greatest miracle.
While most condiments
come in glass jars
or plastic bottles,
Jesus comes
inside of people.
He’s a salt
that melts the ice
around the heart.
He’s a sauce
that turns every pain
into delectable mystery.
When you dunk
those french-fried ideas
of who you are into him,
they become something
else entirely…
Lotus blossoms.
Sea glass.
Abandoned buildings
filled with columns of moonlight.
Cello music over the water.

Like that.

There was a man
who took a breath, held it,
then Loved so completely
he became a tear.
He fell into the world,
diving down and down
until he reached the point
where every being merges,
and there the tear landed.
Now something is growing there,
spreading its roots through everyone.

I kept wanting to heal specific things.
To mete out my prayers tactfully.
I wanted to see at least one bulb replaced
in a city of darkened corners.
But there’s something missing in this approach…
I mixed some parsley into this need,
and a drop or two of his holy tears,
and I remembered:
the sun…!
But not just the sun…
If you picture a sun with countless human faces,
and the power to whisper back and forth
across the dimension where all beings meet,
and the inclination to stand in the drive-thru window
on rainy days, holding out crumpled bags of eternal life
to anyone bold enough to order the special sauce,
that would be a closer approximation.

Healing is what happens
when you stand alone in an empty room,
and tell your entire story to the walls.
Because at some point in the telling,
you’ll reach the place where
everyone
is listening.

You’ll become a curious flavor
in the Beloved’s holy broth.

42 Comments

  2. Andrea says

    I deeply request a crumpled bag of special sauce, and I shall tell my entire story to the walls. (And of course, it’s a spicy one these days, as I allow more herbs to grow in my garden.)

    Such flavor and color reflected in a teardrop. A salty rainbow of humanity.

    Thank you for your curious flavor. It blends nicely and brings out the richness of the broth. 🙂

    Liked by 5 people

    Reply
    • Michael says

      Yes, we live in the Beloved’s herb garden, from which the emerging bounty of every season is unique. Methinks the resulting stew is what you’d have to call a flavor riot…

      Thanks for the soundtrack, and for telling your story to the walls, and for listening to mine…

      Michael

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
        • Michael says

          I think so, Andrea. We’re all reflecting the riot to one another. I’m thinking maybe it’s really just one big riot… 🙂

          Michael

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  5. Writing to Freedom says

    This is a delicious recipe for life and love that you’ve cooked up Michael. Thanks for adding your special ingredients to this wacky stew of life. Please pass the Jesus with a side of humor, infinity and listening walls. 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
    • Michael says

      Will do, Brad! Thanks for coming back for another sample and adding your own wisdom and inspiration to the mix…

      You’ve got me wondering now about seeing God’s spice rack. How exactly that thing is constructed… but I guess if you’re in the business of withholding nothing, then storage space isn’t really a top priority… 🙂

      Blessings
      Michael

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
  6. Alison and Don says

    Oh you amaze me every time Michael. I want one of those crumpled bags of eternal life! Actually I already have one. You just reminded me of it 🙂
    Are we soup yet? I think so, whether or not we know it.
    Alison ❤

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
    • Michael says

      Oh yes, you have one Alison! I’m pretty sure you’re not allowed into the realm of existing beings without one. There’s a strange man at the door into the coliseum handing out these crumpled bags. Unthinking, we jam them into a pocket, or a purse, or a camera bag. It is only eons later that we wonder… where did I set that thing!?

      We’re soup. We’re light. We’re a knowing smile seeing right through it. We’re here…

      Michael ❤

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
  8. Hariod Brawn says

    I particularly like the penultimate verse Michael: Letting it all out, so that all the thoughts and memories and projections become no more than . . . croutons . . . tumbling harmlessly upon the mixed salad of humankind.

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply
    • Michael says

      I love that, Hariod. Croutons… Projections emptied of their essence, en route to dust… Perfect for flicking out of the way… 🙂

      Grateful to be in the mixed salad here with you–
      Michael

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
  10. megdekorne says

    Dear wonder – filled Michael ….that deep cello music is heard across this Great Lake Michigan and from ” abandoned buildings filled with columns of moonlight ” ( Detroit ) …and I want to pour Jesus over every food I taste ….I love you , megxxx

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    Reply
    • Michael says

      Hi Meg,

      I see you have some of these holy places very near to you! It should be no surprise… They would want to gather near you wherever you went, to invite some of the beautiful flavor you create to sprinkle into their ever-delectable broth. Jesus is that most potent of friends… A profound companion… He pairs so well with every moment…

      Love returned like cello music upon the waters…
      Michael

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
  11. footloosedon says

    Yes I certainly feel a strong inclination to stand at the drive-thru window holding out crumpled bags of eternal life to anyone bold enough to order the special sauce. “Would you like some onion rings on the side?”

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
    • Michael says

      Don!

      Let me know when you have some free time and we’ll go down to the shop together and fill out some part time job app’s… 🙂 I gotta’ believe it’s a good time to hand out crumpled bags of eternal life to the unsuspecting… And you’ve already got the lingo down! We could work the window together. Serve up a little good-cop bad-cop customer service…

      Thanks for your e-smiles here, my friend–
      Michael

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      Reply
  12. Harlon says

    What a spectacular buffet, not of all the all- you-can-eat-sort; the whimsy, the epic observation and the story telling as healing means that no sneeze guard is needed. We’re all in this together, safe and sound 🙂
    Peace and love, Harlon

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
    • Michael says

      Thanks, Harlon. I loved your line about us all being in this together, safe and sound. It cracked me up and gave me a sigh of relief at the same time. It truly is helpful to know we’re in it together, and that is our safety…

      Blessings
      Michael

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
  14. Souldiergirl says

    Michael, this piece is exceptional. It gave me chills. “He held his breath and became a tear”- I literally do not have words for how gorgeous this is. Thank you for you using your gift. Really appreciate you.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  15. Diwata says

    Hello Michael! Reading this feels like i am revisiting a familiar place where I had a ‘solar phenomena’, as i call it.. Thank you for this creation, now i’m drowning in tears…

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
    • Michael says

      Thank you, Diwata. You read like a poet, if you are affected so… 🙂 There is something familiar and heartfelt I find in your own writing. I am looking forward to reading more soon…

      Michael

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  16. marga t. says

    What a treat to be back on and finding such treasures (and meals) here on my stroll around the neighborhood. My doctor recently instructed me to make a 24 hour broth – and when I did, the whole house smelled of the deep marrow release of truth. The broth was ridiculous! Your writing is so savory, to be relished slowly, and by the end of each piece, I’m ready once again to be boiled alive. 🙂
    xo!m

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
    • Michael says

      You must have a very good doctor, M… The remedies prescribed sound wonderful. My wife has become a bit of a connoisseur of bone broth herself this year, if this is what you are referencing. Hope the marrow releases the wonderful flavors of healing…

      Your visit here is a treat on this end also, as every authenticity is a flavor revealed, enriching the broth.

      Michael

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      Reply
  17. stockdalewolfe says

    Oh, Michael, I just loved this. Each new line kept up the mystical momentum. You are truly plugged into the Source, dear Michael!! Whatever you’re doing, ACIM or ACIL, not knowing anything about either, it works great!!! Lots of love, Ellen

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
    • Michael says

      Hi Ellen,

      Thank you very much. I’m glad you connected to something that felt living and whole. I won’t even try to explain how the various influences that swirl together in us conspire to inform our creative work. This is kind of the miracle of expression. Something new emerges. As you navigate through your days, I hope you remember you had as much to do with that feeling as I did… Moments of connection are always collaborative!

      Lots of love to you, too–!
      Michael

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

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