Pastoral

The rancher
with eyes patient
as the soil that waits
for rain is telling me
about the Judas Goat
that leads the herds
of sheep along the ramp
to their slaughter
and then goes free.
Does the goat repent?
Oak trees don't resist
the evening breeze.
Treachery is nothing
new to them.
And then the rancher
shows me how the legs
of straying lambs are broken
to teach them loyalty.
You've seen the crèche:
shepherd with a lamb
draped round his shoulders
on his way to witness.
Was your heart cheered?
Now you know: only
in our brokenness
can we be led to wonder.

Copyright © 2004 Kimberly Meyer All rights reserved
from Tar River Poetry
Reprinted by Verse Daily® with permission