I Hold Things Up
As a carpenter I learned, before you can leverage things apart
you have to find purchase. You have to have a place where a pry-bar
can be slipped in or driven with a hammer to separate.
That being done, whether by violent or pursuasive means,
when two factions have been split
they're easier to manipulate.
These are also political techniques.
They apply as well to sweaty things.
They dictate the tone and conditions of our species' life.
They reach into souls and wrench them.
Though pneumatic they're not ephemeral.
They're tough and mean as muscle.
As a carpenter I also learned
If you set a post upon a solid pier
and brace it well it will never
tilt in glory
it will simply know
I'm here to serve
I hold things up,
end of story.
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by Jim Culleny
8/25/46
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