hardly time to sin anymore

the faces
tell you everything.
cold masks hung grey on
the timber of bones.

the long lines of traffic.
white knuckles
gripping the wheel.

the kids at home.
the wife unhappy about
something you don't quite
understand.
the bills piling up.

the factory awaits.
the mine,
the shovel, the pick and axe.

forty years of panning
for gold.

for a two car garage.
a cruise.
a new suit.
a yard without weeds.
to put the kids through school.

it's not longer nine to five.
it's 24 7
with the phone.

what's the answer these days.
the church?

hardly time to sin with
so much going on.