If I could hold
within my hand
The hammer Jesus
swung,
Not all the gold
in all the land,
Nor jewels
countless as the sand,
All in the balance
flung,
Could weigh the
value of that thing
Round which his
fingers once did cling.
If I could have
the table he
Once made in
Nazareth
Not all the pearls
in all the sea,
Nor crowns of
kings, or kings to be
As long as men
have breath,
Could buy that
thing of wood he made --
The Lord of Lords
who learned a trade.
Yes, but his
hammer still is shown
By honest hands
that toil,
And round his
table men sit down,
And all are
equals, with a crown
No gold nor pearls
can soil.
The shop at
Nazareth was bare,
But Brotherhood
was builded there.
--Charles M.
Sheldon (1857-1946)
Happy Labor Day!
Image source: Saint Joseph, charpentier (ca. 1640), Georges de La Tour, Louvre
Poem source
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