He was, you know. Dried out and salted down
By men who had carried his stuff all over their
Country, for reasons they thought inordinately
Silly, chasing after the birthplace of a big river.
But when David died, they determined to carry
Him all the way across several countries, a trip
That took five months, through incredible thick
Woods. They dried and salted him, which he’d
Have appreciated, being Scottish, a thrifty soul.
Best to keep the essence while reducing excess.
Ten of the men who carried his leathery corpse
Died on the journey, and it was a heroic parade
Through unmapped jungle and dangers, but me,
This morning, I think of the quiet as they salted
Their friend. It must have taken days to get him
Just right for the journey. Probably they prayed.
There are so many ways to be heroic and so few
Have to do with violence. We hardly ever shout
That, though. We love shiny things, like swords.
But imagine those quiet days”it was early May
In Africa. His friends turn him ever so carefully,
Five men at once. You can just hear their voices
Murmuring as they smooth the salt like a prayer.
Dear Reader,
Can I be direct with you?
War abroad. Socialists on the rise. AI upending human life. Endless uproar online. The modern attention economy doesn’t want readers — it wants users enslaved to the tyranny of the present.
First Things is the antidote: literary excellence, timeless truths, and a fixed point of reference in a culture that has lost its bearings.
But we can’t do it without readers like you.
Our goal: Raise $150,000 by November 1 to sustain First Things in the year ahead.
Your gift anchors readers in the permanent things.
Make your Fall Campaign gift now using the button below.
If you have any questions or would like more information, please contact Giovanni Del Piero, Director of the Editor’s Circle, at gdelpiero@firstthings.com or 212-627-1985.
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE
New Founders Wanted
It’s now 250 years since America declared her independence and embarked on the experiment of fashioning a…
Forget Odysseus. Aeneas Is the True American Hero.
Who is our Odysseus? Or more precisely, who is the most Odyssean hero of American film? Matt…
Meet the Post-Religious Right
There have been many books written about the online right and the Trump movement, most by people…
