Imagine You Are A Craftsman

The following poem has been posted in conjunction with the post
"Anecdote of the Craft" on hermeticpress.blogspot.com

Imagine You Are A Craftsman

That you are working in wood,
When suddenly the pieces turn out not the same.
You are not doing anything different.
To be sure you are not sure
How you were holding the knife,
Or the wood—
Or maybe it was the wood itself.
You stop you lay down the knife
Which is how long the piece will be—
You spread your hand
Which is how wide the piece will be—
You look at the wood
Which by now you imagine looks back at you—so
You continue. The pieces continue
To be different.
Now you have some which are this way,
And some which are that way.
No telling where this will end—
When suddenly the pieces turn out the same.
Now for sure you have some which are this way,
And some which are that way.
You are a craftsman—
You put all the pieces in one pile.

reprinted from A Printer's Dozen
The Bieler Press, Los Angeles
©1992 — Philip Gallo