Approximating versus Knowing
He wasn’t photogenic, no, not quite.
Some formal portraits capture beauty, glow
Almost with glory, but don’t hold the might
To hint enough of what he had to show,
Why men and women staggered in their hearts.
These pictures made with cameras and with oil
Are lacking crucial force. They seem like charts
Of continents that cannot show seeds’ soil
Or Everest heights. His hair and flesh and face
Left people wounded and transfigured. Christ
Would know about such things and might abase
Himself, caressing while his side is sliced.
The beauty of this poet sliced right through
The guts of those who saw him. These ones knew.
~ Phillip Whidden