Tell me, Jacob, how did you rate
so favorably in God’s eyes?
Your grandfather, Abraham, received
the promise to father a great nation.
Yet, you lied to your father, and swindled
your brother of his birthright, but
the tables turned on you.
Your favorite son, Joseph, was sold
as a slave into a foreign country,
by, of all people, his own brothers.
Why didn’t you love all your sons?
You brought pain to so many
people, but God loved you anyway.
Sometimes, when I look in the mirror,
I see you looking back at me.
But something I’m still trying
to grasp: no matter who we were
yesterday, we are all special
in God’s eyes today.