Brother Beekeeper

Image by Dieter Ludwig Scharnagl from Pixabay 

He’s not very tall,

Kind of plumb and balding

But there’s a smile on his face

That’s in keeping with the calling

 

This black habit is not worn

As he goes ’bout his day

Tending the beehives

Till its time to go pray

 

He entered the House

A sign of his vocation

Though he is better with chores

Than teaching salvation

 

But steadfast and loyal

For his whole life he remains

A cloistered life is his

Rather than existence profane

 

Padre

 

dVerse Poetics: On Profiles & Portraits  The poem is a reflection of a lay brother I knew at a Benedictine house back in my youth.  He was a suburb wood carver and beekeeper.  When not in these pursuits, or taking in the devotions of the day, he worked as a handyman and dishwasher in the kitchens.  It is the profile, therefore, of a man of faith and service.