Robert Hamberger
Jesus and Bitensky
Jesus was born beautiful. Our teacher
told us. Beautiful people sway crowds
so God would have moulded every feature
to please the eye, win hearts and unwrap shrouds,
to spread his message. In our school
religion meant Jesus and we must hear.
As a Jew, Bitensky was excused. The rule
meant he lolled at his desk reading Beezer
or The Beano with studied nonchalance
as if our teacher’s talk about Christ
couldn’t buzz his ears, wasn’t worth a glance.
His boredom was beautiful. Once she snapped At least
you could listen. He stared her dead in the eye,
froze her for moments, and didn’t reply.
told us. Beautiful people sway crowds
so God would have moulded every feature
to please the eye, win hearts and unwrap shrouds,
to spread his message. In our school
religion meant Jesus and we must hear.
As a Jew, Bitensky was excused. The rule
meant he lolled at his desk reading Beezer
or The Beano with studied nonchalance
as if our teacher’s talk about Christ
couldn’t buzz his ears, wasn’t worth a glance.
His boredom was beautiful. Once she snapped At least
you could listen. He stared her dead in the eye,
froze her for moments, and didn’t reply.
Robert Hamberger has been awarded a Hawthornden Fellowship and shortlisted for a Forward Prize. He has published two collections: Warpaint Angel (Blackwater Press, 1997) and The Smug Bridegroom (Five Leaves, 2002), which was recently chosen for the small press Alternative Generation promotion.
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