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[And] the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him. When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt: (Matthew 2:13-14)
Joseph the Dreamer
I am a practical man. The boards
under my hands move
obediently into place, fit
smoothly into each groove. I see
a length of wood and can say
immediately the fraction
of its cubits.
You would think a man
of my kind would
not be given to dreams. And yet
there is much that we grasp
without understanding. Slices
of conversation. Sights
the eyes acknowledged though
the heart remained silent.
While the body is motionless the inmost
mind turns over its thoughts
as a carpenter his pieces
of wood, moving the fragments
ceaselessly, holding one
against another, sanding
a corner to reveal
the true shape.
Even as I sleep the images
scatter, edges dissolving
into space, yet when
I wake, the knowledge
of what must be done comes
clear as daylight.