The Last Day

A poetic paraphrase from Luke 12:15-21.

In days when life and times were hard,
a man would make his way
by carving out the wilderness
for a place where he could stay.
Floyd Henry Hill was such a man
who worked hard all his life
and never really had the time
to find himself a wife.
But he had land for farming grain
and land where cattle roam.
He built himself a high tech barn
and a big two-story home.
He bought a fancy pick up truck,
a silver inlaid saddle,
and had a pool installed out back
where friends could float and paddle.
From the first gold rays of morning
to the setting of the sun
he’d tour his ranch and look with pride
at all that he had done.
But this rancher had a problem,
caused by way too much success.
He was running out of storage space
and suffering lots of stress.
He told his friends he’d build a barn,
like none they’d ever known.
It would cover several acres,
have a zip code all it’s own.
And no matter what the weather,
inside his grand construction
the climate would be perfect
for the optimum production.
Why he would be the envy
of folks around the nation
who’d marvel at his mastery
of ranching innovation.
But the one thing he did not expect
on his ground breaking day
was the very thing that happened.
Floyd Henry passed away.
And all the wealth he worked for
went to Uncle Sam no doubt
cause you can not take it with you
when at last your string’s run out
So what good did it do him,
all that greed and search for wealth?
He should have done for others
and not solely for himself.
See, the one truth he’d forgotten,
is you don’t leave here alive
But, if your treasure is in heaven,
it’s there when you arrive.

Jeff Hildebrandt, copyright 2002