Member-only story
A Note Regarding Church Signs (poem)
There’s a sign at the end of a church’s driveway
that reads: “You are loved”
And I’m struck
by how positively passive that message rings.
I am loved by whom?
I assume they mean Jesus Christ,
the man, the myth, the legend
who resided on Earth hundreds of years ago
and thousands of miles away.
Or maybe they mean God,
the omniscient, esoteric being who possesses
the infinite patience required to love
someone like me.
“You are loved” is a phrase that implies a healthy distance
between the speaker and the receiver.
Too many times, I’ve heard the word “love”
used like bait on the end of a fishing pole
that lures a fish close enough to capture
while still keeping it at arm’s length.
And maybe there’s good reason for that.
Maybe in holding a salmon with your bare hands
looking it in the eye
feeling its heartbeat
and sensing the power of its free will
you lose the urge to subordinate
and consume it.