A vineyard

After Isaiah 5:1-7

Walking the vineyard at night

one can almost smell the grapes ripening

in vain, only the smells of the night

prevail, the smell

of darkness, the smell of dew,

the smell of moonlight touching the vines,

highlighting the tangles of branches

and stems. Only in daylight can one see

the ripening. Only in daylight

can one know which grape to test,

to taste, to feel the explosion of flavor.

The vineyard that was planted

is the vineyard turned bad.

the fruit is bad, unusable even

for poor, cheap wine. The ground is

cursed, producing only briers

and thorns. The vineyard

that was planted is the vineyard

unharvested, abandoned.

Photograph by Paul Brennan via Public Domain Pictures. Used with permission.