Out of the Box
Round and round the mulberry bush
The monkey chased the weasel.
The monkey thought ‘twas all in fun,
“Pop!” goes the weasel. —Children’s traditional
Around and around and around she goes…
But where she stops nobody knows.
Our life is a gamble created by chance;
An endless, exquisite and purposeless dance.
Bow down to your partner, return to the line,
Don’t step on her toes and it all will be fine.
Don’t ask why you’re dancing or where it will end.
Just do what you’re told and I’ll call you my friend.
The order of things is the way it must be.
The chains you are wearing are proof that you’re free.
Don’t question or wonder or march out of step.
There’s only the beat of a drummer: “Hup, Hep!”
Pretend that you’re happy, believe that you are.
Don’t question your elders and you will go far.
The end of the rainbow is waiting for you.
Just work very hard and you’ll get what you’re due.
And what you’ll discover when all’s said and done
Is a coffin-shaped box buried far from the sun.
I hope you won’t mind, I’m aware that it’s small.
But it’s what you deserve, and it’s yours, after all!
♦ ♦ ♦
His body was laid in a square, cubic tomb.
A box with a stone for a lid marked his doom.
And ‘round and around and around went three days
When the box was illumed by the morning’s first rays.
Then “Pop!” went the weasel and up rose the Lord.
The news was not something that could be ignored.
We all shall not sleep for the dead first must rise.
For he is the first-fruits, the “Lord of Surprise!”
The chains fall away and the drummer is gone.
In place of the beat are the sounds of a song.
The dance is more lively, now, “Skip to my Lou!”
The sound and the laughter of children is new.
Our lives need no longer be lived in a box.
Our tutor’s no longer the “School of Hard Knocks.”
We live now by faith, for by grace we are saved.
For not with our works are the Golden Streets paved.
The “Eagle has landed?” The “Weasel has popped!”
Our Lord is alive! For his life can’t be stopped.
So step out of line and rejoice with the throng.
The Lord is alive! And he’s singing our song!
Alleluia! Alleluia!
James A. Tweedie is a retired pastor living in Long Beach, Washington. He has written and published six novels, one collection of short stories, and four collections of poetry including Sidekicks, Mostly Sonnets, and Laughing Matters, all with Dunecrest Press. His poems have been published nationally and internationally in both print and online media. He was honored with being chosen as the winner of the 2021 SCP International Poetry Competition.
James, I cannot fathom how in your mind you incorporated “Pop, Goes the Weasel” with the Easter story. Somehow you pulled it off with scintillating imagery and imagination that speaks to your creativity and innovativeness. “The Eagle Has Landed” is an amazing added comparison. Needless to say, your thinking is “Out of the Box.”
Out of the box, indeed.
Advice like ‘Don’t question your elders’ does indeed stifle young minds.
Alas, the search for the elusive truth never truly ends.
Thanks for the read, James.
What a fresh, interesting, and thoroughly uplifting poem, James. I thank you wholeheartedly for the joy you have brought me this Easter morning! Your poem reminds me of a scene in the film “Risen” where the significance of the resurrection has one character beaming with fearless joy while being interrogated by the murderous Romans.
That’s it, Susan. That’s it exactly! The reality-twisting, mind-bending absurdity of the resurrection of Jesus is a claim so outrageous that, according to the Apostle Paul, only a fool could believe it.
He said, beamingly.
Happy Easter James. I absolutely loved these two poems. They made me smile so much I almost cracked my jaw! The last verse of “Out of the Box” is my kind of humor. Thank you for these Easter smiles. I want more of this please.
James… WOW! I would never have thought of writing this! However, the more I think about it the more sense it all makes. That scene Susan was talking about has the character saying, “Don’t you get it? You don’t have to die!!” to those Roman interrogators. I know that the scene is not strictly scriptural, however, there are plenty of scriptures that highlight the necessity of being childlike. That’s why your pairing of a nursery rhyme with Easter works perfectly! Thanks for the uplifting and very thoughtful poem, James. Matt 18:3
Lovely! I especially like the repetition of round and round. Made me think of the song the Circle Game.
Your wonderful humor here is profound, James! And your thinking is so marvelously original. During the past week, I have been re-reading, with delight, a (prose) book by Frederick Buechner (who was a Presbyterian pastor), entitled “Telling the Truth: The Gospel as Tragedy, Comedy, and Fairy Tale.” The book and your poem fit so well together; your poem covers the tragedy in the first section, and then the comedy in the second. Buechner elucidates what he calls the “comedy” of the Gospel as the things people see as clearly impossible — yet they turn out to be true! God’s Son was clearly doomed, as you say — yet popped out as the “Lord of Surprise”! He is risen! Happy Easter to you.
A clever reminder, James. Happy Easter to you!
Alleluia, alleluia, and He will return.