Feminine 101

Not so very long ago, I demanded of my old man

In a fit of youthful arrogance nothing less than,

My half of the inheritance to be used how I want.

At the time I was indifferent, even nonchalant,

The expression in his eyes said he clearly knew–

I know now, from the start, he knew what I would do.

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A few short days ‘til I went whistling to my ruin,

Indulging in excess that I claimed was only human.

I told myself with every mile I put between,

I could escape his dismay, my sins remain unseen.

Amidst strangers, worthless men, my relish was unbound.

My legacy, my vigor wasted, upon that foreign ground.

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It was the women with their bewitching eyes,

Whose flatteries were Sheol in disguise.

The wine, how it sparkled in sumptuous cups!

Sloshed wanton on my robe, it wholly corrupts.

Promising always but never delivered,

Why? Until it was gone, I never considered.

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In all my wanting, grasping, and craving,

I didn’t understand what I was chasing. 

Running from that distant man’s gaze,

I left the priceless for that which decays.

So desperate for wasted love was this hapless fool,

I gave myself willingly to the greedy and the cruel.

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The first to go was the food and with it our feasts

My scheming friends left me to die in the streets.

The endless wealth of my worthy namesake,

Is spent upon the fickle and all that they could take.

So destitute was I in my tattered pride,

I took any pathetic work that I could find.

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So starving as I fed those miserable hogs,

I longed to sate my hunger with those very pods.

There I was a victim of my own temerity.

And in a moment of grace, of blessed clarity,

I saw through the muck, the mud and the loam,

I saw it was time for me to go home.

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Odd I should travel to a strange country,

To realize that His servants never go hungry.

Awash with the weight of hard-earned shame,

I knew I wasn’t worthy to bear His name.

But better to trade my spiraling disaster,

For a laborer’s wage, and a better master.

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All that long way, I rehearsed what I would say.

Crafted in care, my deep remorse to convey.

“Father…” I am not worthy to be His child!

“I have sinned…” Your name I have defiled.

“Make me your servant…” It’s no more than I deserve.

I’ll be content as a hired man if I can only serve.

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So caught up in my speech, I didn’t see Him coming.

In haste, that distinguished Lord came running.

He’s calling for a party, not like the ones I left behind.

The fattened calf to slaughter is assigned.

All I thought I wanted, was here all along,

A place where I mattered, a place where I belong.

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He paid no heed to my practiced appeal.

Wrapped in robe and ring, it felt surreal.

I would not have believed had angels above,

Proclaimed his unfettered joy, his unfailing love.

But folded in his arms, I was utterly undone,

I believe at last that I was always his son.

This was inspired by the biblical parable of the Prodigal Son as found in Luke 15. I realize that this is only a part of a broader story . So the second part will come out next week.