The Third Date Never Comes

I hope you had a good celebration this Easter. There really is nothing better in the world to celebrate—the resurrection of Jesus changes everything. Here’s a short poem I wrote as I thought about what Easter means for my future:

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The Third Date Never Comes

The pathway through the graveyard
Reminds me that my time is short
As names and dates surround me
And silently give their report

My life between two graven dates
A simple dash will represent
But when my time
On earth is spent
The second date won’t be my end
It only marks transitioning
Into a better beginning
And since I have a Saviour
I won’t need an engraver—

The third dates never comes.

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Because of Jesus’ resurrection, the life of a Christian cannot be fully captured by the dash between their birth and death dates. When my own death date is written, I’d love to have a second dash put in after it. Maybe that would confuse people, but I’d hate for them to think that my story was over just because I have a birth date and a dash and a death date. The reality is that I’ll be more alive after the second date than I am now before it. Is there anything in the world more wonderful, more hopeful, more life-changing, then the resurrection?

“Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” – 1 Corinthians 15:55

Here’s one more poem for you, considering how long that second dash will be:

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The Old Tree

The old tree
Knows centuries of stories,
And all I have
Are spring leaves
And autumn
Is just around the corner.

The old hill
Has seen his fill
And I spring up
Like a daffodil
And bloom and fade
And fall into the ground.

The old sea
Keeps ancient secrets, she
Cares little for the
Shortness
Of my shanty.

When I am old
(In human terms)
I’ll be an infant on the earth
And yet—

I know I will outlive them all.