Beginagain

Beginagain

NOAH TALKS TO HIS WIFE

“Knock, Knock.”

“Who’s there?”

“It’s me,” said Noah.

“I’m building a boat.”

“You’re building a boat?”

“I’m building a boat.

It’s covered in tar.”

“It’s covered in tar?

It won’t go far.”

“It’s covered in tar

and as long as a pitch.”

“As long as a pitch?”

“As long as a pitch

a football pitch.”

“A which?”

“A pitch – a football pitch.

It’s also as wide as a motorway.”

“Excuse me, dear,

have you put your coat away?”

“Well, of course I’ve not,

I’m building a boat.”

“Well, excuse me, dear.

I’m feeding the goat.”

NOAH TALKS TO HIS BOYS

“Knock, Knock. Knock, Knock.”

“Who’s there? Who’s there?”

“It’s Old Man Noah. I’ve done my share

of chopping down trees and knocking in nails.

And I’d like some help before she sails.”

“Before she sails? Before she sails?”

“Before she sails, boys, that’s what I said.
Before she sails or they’ll all be dead;

Washed away by waves and waves

of wobbly wetness to watery graves.

So quick, be quick and find the fliers.

Bring in the birds, boys, larks and lyres,

Buzzards and bustards, sparrows and thrushes,

Wrens and robins. Climb trees – search bushes!

Two of each – a male and its mate.

Quick, be quick, boys, don’t be late.

Ham and Shem, bring in the birds.

Japheth, you wait, I want a few words.

Japheth, my son, job number two.

Go hunt – go seek and gather a zoo

Of large and lumpy, small and dumpy,

Jerky and jumpy, and short and stumpy.

Animals, Japheth, tame or wild,

Savage or sensible, meek or mild.

Brayers, barkers, hooters, honkers,

Neighers, narkers, squeakers, squawkers,

Screechers, snorters, grinders, grunters,

Bleaters, boomers, sniffers, snuffers,

Snappers, crackers, howlers, growlers…

Bring them in, boy, two by two.

Go hunt – go seek and gather a zoo.

NOAH TRIES TO TALK TO THE WOMEN

“Knock, Knock. Knock, Knock. Knock, Knock. Knock, Knock.”

“Ok, Ok. Ok, Ok.

We heard you knocking,

Knock, knock-knock knocking.

We heard you knocking, Old Man Noah.

But don’t knock so quick quick-quick;

Knock a bit slower.”

“And give us a chance to get to the door

before you knock a great hole in the floor

by stomping and stamping,

and beating and banging,

hammering, clamouring,

clumping and clanging.”

“What is the matter, man? Why all this hurry?

We’re cooking a meal of vegetable curry.”

“Slow down, slow down.

Breathe deep. Breathe long.

Tell us a story, sing us a song.”

“Stop rushing around with a frown on your face.

Smile, smileawhile with glory and grace.”

“Be Noah. Step slow–slow–slow slower.

Be old, Old Man Noah.

Stop ranting and raving…”

NOAH TALKS TO HIS WIFE…AGAIN

“Dear wife, all my life, I have tried to stay calm.

To go with God gently. To help, not to harm.

But today I am pacing and pushing and panting;

today I am racing and rushing and ranting;

today I am chasing and crushing and chanting.

For today we must get on the

ARK

before DARK,

before the LARK sings,

before the RAIN stings,

before the FLOOD springs up

out of the EARTH

and brings

DEATH…

GO speak to the neighbours and beg them to board.

This flood is a judgment, a word from the LORD.

A warning – go give them

One last invitation.

Go tell them God loves them:

His special creation.

GO … GO now, wife………

GO now

GO tell them – entreat them;

GO warn them – berate them;

GO beg them – implore them.

GO… GO now, wife.

GO now

GO … GO … now.”

NOAH’S WIFE TALKS TO THE NEIGHBOURS

“Come in. Come in. The ark is tall.

It’s long and broad. There’s room for all.”

“Come in! Come in! The old girl’s potty.

Lost her marbles. Going dotty!”

“Come in! Come in! Don’t stand and wait.

Come in right now. Don’t hesitate.”

“Come in! Come in! The old girl’s nutty.

Not all there. Soft as putty.”

“Come in! Come in! It’s time to board.

You’ll all be drowned. We’ve heard the Lord.”

“Come in! Come in! We’ll all be drowned.

We’re in a desert. Look around

at all the soil,

at all the sand,

at all the rocks,

at all the land.”

“It’s never rained. It never will.

There is no God. We’ve had our fill

of listening to your silly story.

We won’t come in! We won’t say sorry!”

“SO GO AWAY and take god with you

before we boil you down for SNIFFGLUE.

GO ON – GET LOST you grumpy goat!

GO BACK to Noah and stay on your boat!”

NO MORE TALKING – THE ARK SAILS

So only the eight of them got on the ARK.

GOD shut the door and the sky grew DARK.

Down came the rain

SPIT SPITTER

SPAT SPATTER

PITTER PITTER PITTER PITTER

PATTER PATTER PATTER PATTER

Thin drops of rain that fell on the chin drops,

Without and within drops,

That wiped off the grin drops,

And soaked to the skin drops.

Thin drops that crept up the toes to the shin drops,

Calf drops and knee drops,

And over the thigh drops,

O my drops! Quite high drops!

Chest drops and vest drops and tie drops.

O why drops? Too high drops!

Neck drops

Lip drops

glub drops

Nose drops

glubglubglub drops

Eye drops

Bye drops

Cry drops

Die drops

STOP DROPS

MEANWHILE… ON THE ARK

For forty days the sky had wept.

For forty nights the clouds had sobbed.

And all around the waves had leapt.

Around the ark the waters bobbed

Until the LORD said, “That’s enough.”

The sky grew calm, the sea less rough.

The boat sailed on

and on

and on

until five months had come and gone.

And then it STOPPED

Upon the peak

Of ARARAT,

A mountain … Turkish,

Maybe Greek.

And Noah waited

With his wife

His sons

His daughters

Waited

Waited

Waited

Till the waters had

Abated.

THEN

He sent a great black

BIRD

… a raven

big strong wings and

BRAVE ENOUGH

To leave the ark.

A BIRD

That dared

to leave its mate

and make the eight upon the ark

still wait and wait.

While round and round in circles

flying,

sometimes sighing,

ever always trying

land to find

But finding none,

In circles

flying,

on an on

it flew.

BACK ON THE ARK

Meanwhile… within the ark,

Old Father Noah

chose a dove to look for land,

trees or rocks, soil or sand,

any thing or any where

that was not

WATER

anything that was not

WET.

Sent it out,

it hovered,

seeking,

searching,

yet

it could not find a place

to land

except upon the palm

of Noah’s hand.

Then …

One week later

off it flew

sent out again

trip number two.

And this time it came back

At sunset,

scarcely wet,

And bearing in its beak

A branch,

An olive leaf,

A token of God’s favour

And for man

relief.

And still the patriarch

upon the boat

was patient,

waited

one week more

Before

he sent the dove

a third time

out,

And this time coming in to land

upon the shore,

it rested there,

While Old Man Noah planned

to leave the ark

at GOD’s behest,

at GOD’s command,

still waiting,

waiting.

ONE YEAR LATER

Until

at last

A whole long year

had passed

upon the ark.

And then God said,

“Come out, Old Noah

and your wife,

your sons,

your daughters.

Start your life on earth

anew.”

And out he came with all the crew,

And all the animals and birds by two by two:

An alphabet of animals;

A floating zoo:

An aardvark

And a bat

A cat

A dog

An elephant – it’s true.

A fox

A goat

A hyrax

And an ibex

And a jackal

which could cackle

And a kanga with a baby roo.

Leopards, lemurs, monkeys,

Nightjars, owls and penguins

Quails, a quacking duck and drake

A rooster crowing

Ruminating cows and sheep

And spiders!

Tabbies, toms and tigers

And a unicorn – make no mistake!

Voles and vultures

Wolverines and wolves

Xtraordinary creatures

With strange prehistoric features

Not forgetting both

The hairy scary yaks and the zebras with the stripes upon their backs.

What a sight and what a sound:

All God’s creatures gathered there

Upon the ground.

NO MORE FLOOD

Old man Noah built an altar,

Sacrificed a lamb or three;

Praised the LORD and worshipped

Now that they were free.

God said:

“Mm that lamb smells good.

Now then, Noah, listen well.

That’s the last time I will flood the earth.

It will be a place to dwell

For you and all your children.

See the rainbow in the sky

Will be a sign

To you forever

No-one ever else will die this way.”

Still today

God keeps his promise:

Every time the sun shines through the rain,

We remember how God saved Old Noah

and his family

and the animals;

and began again;

beganagain.

Genesis 6-9