Editor’s note: Amos is a church mouse who types by hurling himself at the keys, but he can’t use the capital shift keys and he shuns punctuation marks – except the hyphens and dashes.
the donkey s tale
boss willifred the white
rat invited me to jump in
his tiny time traveler again
this week to visit the site of
the original palm Sunday
celebration
so we attached the tiny
time traveler to my 57
cheese-rolet hopped in
spun around twice and found
ourselves on the outskirts of
first-century jerusalem on
the way to bethany
excitement and tension both
filled the middle eastern
atmosphere boss you could
just sense something was
about to happen
while willifred and i
wandered down the
road and around the
countryside we spied
some mangled palm
branches laying along
and beside the road
before either of us
could speak or ask
the reason why we
saw a small donkey
meandering its way
back from jerusalem
what s the meaning
of all these mangled
palm branches says we
to the hairy little beast
those are instruments
of joy and life death
and destruction says he
how can that be says me
how can one little
palm tree signify both
joy and calamity
you ll see says he don t
you know about jesus
triumphal entry into king
david s city all the way
from bethany
all the people cheered
and shouted waved palm
branches and no one
doubted jesus was the
coming king jesus would
soon rule everything
at least that was the thought
of the cheering crowd pack
when jesus came riding
through on my back
but you see it wasn t
to be says he - at least
not yet but it ll happen
soon you bet
what happened says me
i understand about the
joy and life and freedom
from strife but where s
the death and destruction
part that doesn t make
sense to my mind and heart
here s the deal for those
who see and feel
all those palm sunday cheers
turned to gloomy friday jeers
those palm branches turned
to cat-of-nine-tail lashes
and jesus the coming lord
became the criminal s scorn
but i don t understand all that
says willifred the rat how and
why did jesus go from triumph
to tragedy all of this sounds
a bit bogus and ratchety
actually it was foretold says he
for you see the story hasn t
completely unfolded his death
isn t the end jesus ultimately wins
— just wait till easter morn and
all mourning will be over
boss the donkey knew what
he was talking about
although the palm branches may
have seemingly turned to lashes
for a time they — like the cross
— have become symbols of
victory for you and me
amos