A.M. (After the Master)

Any day now, any day the Master will come to claim his own They broke the Word (with their lives) and broke the bread (with their hands) on the margins and the fringes Leaders yes, officers no the Master had not objectified and so why should they Any day now, any day They travelled and they preached and witnessed to the Word - what the Master did what the Master said The sect it grew and the world began to take notice and fellowships became fodder as widows and orphans were made Any week now, any month, any year now As the Word kept on breaking along with the bread and the numbers kept on growing What did the Master mean? as they knocked and the door was not opened as they asked and the answer was not given what did the Master mean? The Word began to break differently as all sorts were claiming: 'I know what he meant' For the witnesses were all gone now and success and settling replaced failure and the itinerant purposeful pioneers How to deal with success? how to deal with settlers? how to deal with growth? What would the Master do? what would the Master say? Whatever did he mean? He never was successful he never settled down he started with twelve and ended with eleven How do settled down pilgrims act? Any decade now, any age now (perhaps) Time to pull the ends together time to attach the strings enough of balloons all over the lot time to pull them in Time to draw the line The witnesses' witnesses' witnesses were all gone now time to find the thread what to do when the excitement is gone but live from day to day and keep his questions alive? What do you think the Master would do? What do you think the Master would say? Whatever do you think he could have meant? What about the Empire? How do they govern it and how do they rule? Once and twice and three times removed the table of the breaking became a ladder in the making The thread. Ah, the thread it certainly cannot lead to all of us it must just lead to one Not much room at the top there is some room though on the lower rungs but plenty of room around it down below The thread. The thread. And the ladder assigned some stools to mingle with and minister to the crowd gathered down below Ladders stools and masses And whose were the Word and the bread to break? All of us? A few of us? Where was the line? Where was the thread? The thread, they said, assigned the ladders, and the ladders, they said, assigned the stools, and all must gather round, they said for we know, they decreed, what the Master did we know, they decreed, what the Master said and we know, they decreed, what the Master meant What of "Follow me"? someone asked True, they said but then was then and now is now (said the ladders who held the threads and assigned the stools who ministered to the crowds below) "Follow us"