that he would die a happy man,
that he would consider his meager life
a success, if
in years to come,
somewhere,
someday,
someone
kicked in Jonah’s door
and Jonah was surprised.
Shocked.
Amazed.
Let him be utterly
bewildered, dear God.
Let him wonder,
raised-eyebrowed and slack-jawed,
They kick doors in now?
Since when?
Hang on, hang on—
they’re putting people in ovens?
You can’t be serious.
Since when
do people
put other people
in ovens?
From Hope: A Tragedy by Shalom Auslander (2012). Submitted by Ailsa Holland.
Verbatim Poetry 