After these appearances, Jesus showed himself again to the followers at the Sea of Tiberias, and this is how he appeared: Simon Peter and Thomas, called Didymas, were together, along with Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, and those belonging to Zebedee, and two other followers of his. Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They said to him, “We will go with you.” So immediately they made their way into a boat, and that evening they caught nothing. But when morning had arrived Jesus was standing upon the shore, although the followers did not know that it was Jesus. And Jesus asked them,

“Children, do you have anything to eat?”

And they answered him, “No.” And he said to them, 

“Cast you net on the right side of the boat, and you will find something.”

So they cast, and this time they were unable to draw it up due to the multitude of fish. And so the follower for whom Jesus had affection said to Peter, “It is the Lord.” And when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his fisherman’s cloak - because he had been naked - and he threw himself into the sea. And the other followers arrived in a little boat, because they were not far from land - about one hundred yards - and they were dragging the net filled with fish. As soon as they arrived ashore they saw a charcoal fire there with fish laid upon it, along with bread. and Jesus said to them,

“Bring some of the fish you just caught.”

  —John 21:1-10 

I’m surrounded by an ocean of creatures

who possess an unlimited capacity for creativity

and we’re not even aware

to the contrary -

we destroy, as a matter of course, rather than create

don’t ask me how I feel

tell me how you feel instead

I recall needing an audience 

to validate my sense of self-worth

today, if I were the only human alive - God forbid -

I would still feel something inside

something warm and pleasant

that can never be bought or sold

I write poetry for the same reason

that we all take in air

it’s just that not all of us are aware of our need for it

but when the Golden Age returns

how many of us will survive the transition?

So the other followers said to him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see the imprint of the nails in his hands and place my finger in them, and also thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe.”

Eight days later his followers were inside again, and this time Thomas was with them. and Jesus came although the doors were shut, and stood among them and said,

“May peace be with you.”

Then he said to Thomas,

“Bring forth your finger, and see my hands; and reach with your hand into my side. And do not be lacking in faith, but believe.”

And Thomas answered, “My Lord and my God.” Jesus said to him, 

“Thomas, do you believe because you have seen me? Happy are those who believe even though they have not seen.”

And in fact, Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his followers, which have not been written in this book. But these have been written so that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of Divinity, and that by believing you might have life by means of his name.

  — John 20:25-31

Jesus said to her, 

“Mary.”

She turned herself around and said to him, “Rabboni!” - that is, “Teacher”. Jesus said to her,

“Do not touch me, for I have not yet ascended to my Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am about to ascend to my Father and your Father, and to my God and your God’.”

So Mary the Magdalene went and told the followers that she had seen the Lord and that he had said these things to her. Then on the evening of same day, the first day of the week, while the doors were shut for fear of the Judeans, Jesus arrived and stood among them, and said to them, 

“May peace be with you.”

And after he had said this he showed them his hands and his side. And the followers were overjoyed to see him. Then Jesus said to them again, 

“May peace be with you. Just as my Father has sent me, in the same way I am sending you.”

And after saying this he breathed upon them and said to them,

“Receive the Holy Spirit. If you overlook anyone’s shortcomings, they will be overlooked. And if you continue to hold anyone’s shortcomings against them, they will be held against them.”

But Thomas, one of the twelve, named “Didymus”, was not with them when Jesus arrived.

  — John 20:16-24 

On the first day of the week Mary the Magdalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone was removed from the tomb. Then she ran to Simon Peter and to the other disciple, for whom Jesus had affection, and said to them, “They have removed the Lord from out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have taken him!” So Peter and the other disciple went to the tomb. And they ran together, but the other disciple outran Peter and arrived at the tomb first. And stooping down and looking inside, he saw the linen bindings lying together. But he would not enter. Then Simon Peter arrived and entered the tomb and saw the bindings lying together, and the cloth that covered his head lying separately from the bindings, wrapped up by itself. Then the other disciple, who had arrived first, entered: and he saw and believed. Nonetheless, they did not yet know the Scripture stating the he must rise from the dead. And the disciples returned to their homes. But Mary stood outside the tomb in tears. And as she wept she stooped down and looked into the tomb and saw two divine beings wearing white, sitting, one at the head and the other at the feet of where the body of Jesus had lain. And they said to her, “Woman, why are you in tears? And she said to them, “Because they have taken my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” And after she had said this she turned around and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, 

“Woman, why are you in tears? Whom are you looking for?” 

Assuming that he was the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have taken him somewhere else please tell me where you have taken him, and I will carry him away.”

  — John 20:1-15

along the South Florida coast

humans are in the process of exterminating a subspecie

of the American crocodile

I will not debate

the pros and cons of such an extermination

but I do have a question

according to man’s best available methods of measurement

various forms of crocodile-like species have existed on the earth for hundreds of millions of years

and survived several global extinction events

including the great reptiles

how many have humans survived?

These things were done in this way so that the scripture, “None of his bones were broken”, might be fulfilled. Another scripture, “They will gaze upon him whom they have pierced”, was written.

Afterward Joseph of Arimathaea, a disciple of Jesus - although secretly for fear of the Judeans - requested of Pilate that he might remove Jesus’ body. And Pilate gave him permission, so he came and took Jesus’ body. And Nicodemus came also, the one who came to Jesus under cover of night. And he brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, the weight of around one hundred pounds. And they took the body and bound it in linen with the spices, according to Jewish burial customs.

Now in the same place where he was impaled there was a garden, and there was a new burial tomb in the garden in which no human body had yet been placed. They laid Jesus there in view of the Jewish day of preparation, because the tomb was close by. 

  — John 19:36-42

Now the mother of Jesus stood near his stake along with Mary the wife of Cleophas, his mother’s sister, and Mary the Magdalene. And when Jesus caught sight of his mother, with the disciple for whom he showed great affection standing by, he said to his mother,

“Woman, see here your son!”

And likewise he said to his disciple,

“See here your mother!”

And from that moment onward the disciple took her into his own home. After this Jesus, knowing that everything was accomplished, in order to fulfill scripture, said,

“I am thirsty.”

And a vessel filled with vinegar had been set out. So they filled a sponge with vinegar and placed it upon a hyssop shoot to put up to his mouth. And when Jesus had received the vinegar he said,

“It has been accomplished.”

Then his head fell, and his life departed from his body.      

Consequently, since it was the preparation, in order not to leave the bodies upon the stake (because that sabbath was a special sabbath day), the Jews asked Pilate to have their legs broken so as to take them away. So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and then of the other who was impaled with him. But when they came to Jesus they did not break his legs, because they noticed that he was already dead. Then one of the soldiers thrust a spear into his side, and out poured blood and water.

And he who saw all of this has attested to it, and his testimony is truthful. And he knows he is telling the truth, so that you might believe it. 

  — John 19:25-35