ROBE

Finding an unfamiliar robe in your closet 

You put it on and blango! You're a priest.

Since you've no knowledge whose priest you are

You stand in the early morning light with those 

Waiting to do day labor. No one chooses you

To pick fruit or asks whether you've done construction.

A woman shares a cigarette with you; a man

Asks to be forgiven. For all you know

You are a priest of a merciless god;

Some of the symbols on your vestment are disquieting;

You forgive him anyway. Finally, an old pickup truck 

Pulls to the curb; three demigods, pooling resources,

Are conducting test runs of a new faith. No

Human sacrifice is planned; light martyrdom

May be required. You ride in the back,

Doing small miracles to amuse some vestals

Drowsily watching the sun shrug itself upwards.