A Safer Place Poem by Charles Chaim Wax

After Thanksgiving Dinner
her husband Howard
left the kitchen
went to watch
Lawrence of Arabia
then my sister began
“The Zumbergs are the lowest scum
on the face of the earth
more money than God
and they treat you like dirt,
but God loves the Zumbergs
otherwise why would
He make them rich
and make me poor...”
My three year old niece
interrupted my sister saying, “We not poor.”
“No, no, we’re not poor, darling.”
my sister having forgot
Howard was terrified of
that word. Suddenly
a confused and painful look
flooded my sister’s face. “Why does
God love the Zumbergs
if they are the lowest trash
on the face of the earth? This is the question
I ask myself every night
before sleep
not every night
but a lot of nights. Why do such
DISGUSTING
people
have so much money? ” She paused
and looked around. No one gave
an answer but by now she’d worked
herself into frenzy, “I’M WAITING.
WHY DOES GOD
LOVE THE ZUMBERGS?
I could understand it if
they had a shred of decency
but they don’t. The whole DISGUSTING
bunch of ‘em
one worse than the other
five to five I put my pen down
and Arnold...that worm...yells at me,
‘I’M NOT PAYING YOU
FOR HALF A DAY.’
If I told Howard
he’d go up there and punch him out.”
I said serenly, “There’s no God
no one UP THERE
creates Fate
that’s ours to do
ours alone. I repeat
no God.”
My sister gasped
face turning chalk white
finger pointed at the ceiling
finally saying,
“Quiet
He’s listening.”