The coin

After Luke 15:1-10

The coin drops on the floor,

or is dropped, its edge catching

upright, The coin rolls

by its own momentum to a corner,

dark, or under a chest, dusty, 

or into a crack, lodging.

And the choice: forget the coin, lost,

because there are nine not lost,

or search for the coin, raising

the dust and the dirt, peering

into the dark corners and crevices,

getting hands and knees dirty, dust

rising everywhere? Mourn and forget

the loss, or seek and rejoice the found?

Photograph by ZSun Fu via Unsplash. Used with permission.

One sheep, lost

After Luke 15:1-10

Amid the murmurs and

the muttering, disdain

for the dirty, the nasty,

the deplorable, the dregs,

the unredeemable,

a story:

one sheep, lost;

ninety-nine sheep, not lost.

Abandon the lost, taking

Solace in the ninety-nine?

Or search for the lost one

leaving the ninety-nine

to fend for themselves.

It’s a choice, freedom of choice,

to choose the one, lost,

seeking the lost, one, until

found, rescued, carried back.

Choose the one, lost,

or the ninety-nine, not lost?

Photograph by Flavio Gasperini via Unsplash. Used with permission.