Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, THE MINISTER'S WIFE, by JAY G. SIGMUND


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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

THE MINISTER'S WIFE, by                     Poet's Biography
First Line: Ours is a peaceful town
Last Line: For rebellion?
Subject(s): Clergy; Marriage; Priests; Rabbis; Ministers; Bishops; Weddings; Husbands; Wives


Ours is a peaceful town
Of a thousand souls or so:
It is cradled among the hills:
And we are provincial,
Self-satisfied,
And contented. . . .
But souls must be saved:
So we hire parsons to do this
Little service for us:
And we have five churches
Whose lofty spires,
Like great inverted icicles,
Pierce the blue sky
Overhead.
No, I shall not waste time
Telling you of the five pastors
Who labor in those churches --
Though many noble things might be said of them
And the good works wrought by their hands.

Nay:
I have rather to speak of a woman
Whom I saw today. . . .
She stood in a doorway
Of a modest cottage,
Watching her three children
As they left for shool.
Her calico dress was a little faded,
And her smile a little tired
And worried:
Her face was pinched,
And wore the gray shadow of self-denial:
But she waved a joyous good-bye
To the neatly-dressed children.
I have seen her frequently before,
In various places:
I have seen her in church,
In her run-over shoes and shabby hat,
For she teaches a Sunday school class;
I have seen her calling on the sick:
I have heard the kind words she spoke to a shiftless loafer:
I have seen the warming smile she gave a wayward girl . . .
The village Magdalene.
I have heard her voice in the choir,
Singing old hymns. . . .
But once I saw a flush creep over her face,
And her eyes flashed fire:
That was when the banker's pretty daughter
Tittered at her old-fashioned coat. . . .
But this was the only sign
That jibes stung her,
Or that her cross was heavy. . . .
She is a brave woman.

In our village,
Souls must be saved:
And souls may be the property
Of humans exceeding poor in purse:
And ministers have wives . . .
And oh,
We expect so much of them!
Poor things,
Why do we watch them so closely,
Expecting them to set an example
For us --
Who have less privation,
And so little that calls
For rebellion?





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