day 167

“The Lord bless you

   and keep you;
the Lord make his face to shine upon you,

   and be gracious to you;
the Lord lift up his countenance upon you,

   and give you peace.” Numbers 6:24-26

when we curse folk

instead of blessing,

when we are not willing

to don a mask

as an act of grace,

when we turn our back

on those around us

and offer them pain,

we are offering

the

ironic blessing

© 2020 Thom M. Shuman