What if Jacob,
sleeping that night in the desert,
running in desperation from his deceit and dishonor,
had slept with a pistol
stashed beneath his stony pillow?

What if,
suddenly attacked by the angel
(or God or whatever–
it's left deliciously vague),
Jacob had pulled out his gun
and shot the mysterious wrestler
in the temple?

As it turns out,
his name that night
was changed from Jacob to Israel—
"wrestles with God."
How differently would things have turned out
if he'd become
"shoots God in the head"?

Text and image © 2011 by Dirk deVries. All rights reserved.