Winners and Heaven on Earth

Congratulations to Lenny Lianne, Diane Cabe and Melanie Smith, the poetry readers who identified Henry VIII as the Tudor who wrote "Greensleeves." All three will receive a book of poems. Keep an eye on your respective mailboxes for your prizes!

Now, National Poetry Month may have ended in the cruellest month, but I will continue to share poetry with you here on Hedgehog Lover. I also will continue contributing to this blog, so feel free to stop by to see what has been posted between poetry e-mails. I might even post my own poems, or yours — you never know!

Scroll down to read "Heaven on Earth," a fun poem by Kristin Berkey-Abbott, courtesy of The Writer’s Almanac.

And remember, when you encounter a poem that affects you, share it with me —and I’ll in turn share it with others. Good poetry cannot — and should not — be contained!


Heaven on Earth

I saw Jesus at the bowling alley,
slinging nothing but gutter balls.
He said, "You've gotta love a hobby
that allows ugly shoes."
He lit a cigarette and bought me a beer.
So I invited him to dinner.

I knew the Lord couldn't see my house
in its current condition, so I gave it an out
of season spring cleaning. What to serve
for dinner? Fish—the logical
choice, but after 2000 years, he must grow weary
of everyone's favorite seafood dishes.
I thought of my Granny's ham with Coca Cola
glaze, but you can't serve that to a Jewish
boy. Likewise pizza—all my favorite
toppings involve pork.

In the end, I made us an all-dessert buffet.
We played Scrabble and Uno and Yahtzee
and listened to Bill Monroe.
Jesus has a healthy appetite for sweets,
I'm happy to report. He told strange
stories which I've puzzled over for days now.

We've got an appointment for golf on Wednesday.
Ordinarily I don't play, and certainly not in this humidity.
But the Lord says he knows a grand miniature
golf course with fiberglass mermaids and working windmills
and the best homemade ice cream you ever tasted.
Sounds like Heaven to me.


by Kristin Berkey-Abbott from Whistling Past the Graveyard.
© Pudding House Publications, 2004