Hand of a Child

Hand of a Child

Take the hand of a child
Hold it firmly
Respectfully
A fresh life examines
Your eyes and mien
Looks for truth and safety
Knows quicker than most
Of its discovery
Or its absence
Registers every input.


Will that hand so small
Comfort and cure
Smite and smash
Build and beautify
Wield the sceptre of right
Lift a languishing one?
Will it be opened or closed?
Will it in years to come
Pass on the legacy
With some aroma of yours?


(Painting Saint Joseph the Carpenter, Georges de la Tour)