Good for Nothing

There’s a song I’ve listened to a few times that rings like a bell in my head called “Good For Nothing”. It tells a story of people making mistakes and feeling… good for nothing. The chorus is what really rang in my head though.

“Good for nothing, like Nazareth where the Son of Man was born.
Good for nothing, like two fish in the hands of a little boy.
Good for nothings what they said he was driving nails into his hands.
He’s been to the grave and back.
I guess he didn’t do all that,
Good for nothing.”

Listening to those lyrics resonated, as I bet they would with a lot of people, because I think we often find ourselves feeling good for nothing. To look at it from the point of view of this you really see how something considered good for nothing by those surrounding it can evolve into a great for everyone. This spiraled into the idea that small things lead to great things and the poem The Unimportant.

I’ve always wanted to go line by line through my poems to really expand on my thoughts as I was writing, but I hesitate because the joy of art is being able to interpret it in your own way that speaks to you. This one in particular I wanted to cover some of it, just a glimpse into my mindset as I write.

The slowly building Eastern wind
The saying hi to forgotten friend
The making turns when others bend
The soft sorry to make amends

Here I was just thinking of how nice it was for someone to reach out to you when you haven’t heard from them in awhile. The idea that sometimes we have to make slight adjustments to our lives to meet people where they’re at and how important it is to forgive for every relationship. This first set was rooted in long distant relationships. Some are literally distance, some are distant by time, and some are distant by anger. It’s the small things that help bring those relationships closer.

The seed that grows into a tree
The soft reminder you are seen
The question asking where you’ve been
The sticking through when you are mean.

This is more personal relationships. It’s a representation of how relationships can grow into a great thing. The small reminders that help each partner feel like they are seen. The willingness to let go of anger and accept when we’ve made a mistake. I purposely wrote the last line with the thought that it doesn’t mean sticking it out when someone is mean to you, but our own willingness to recognize when we have crossed a line. It’s the ability to overcome our embarrassment and shame of making a mistake and putting that saved energy back into your relationship.

The ripple that turns into wave
The holding in so you behave
The silly secrets, don’t you cave
The little child came to save

Some lines in the poem stick out like. The holding in so you behave, a line I think that really came from my wife. She talks a lot about being a people pleaser and the faces she feels like she has to put on sometimes to make sure those around her feel loved. She’s a very loving person and she’s not spiteful about it and she honestly enjoys others’ joy, but that line seemed to resonate as she has her struggles. The feeling that you have to hold back your own feelings to make those around you feel comfortable. Holding those in can be extremely burdensome. It’s followed by “the silly secrets, don’t you cave,” in direct correlation to the line before the relief for holding in is having someone special to share those struggles with. Someone you can trust to hold onto your secrets with you.

The snuggle in the morning breeze
The getting dressed with so much ease
The blessings from that time you sneezed
The little wants try to appease

This line is about my children. As I was writing my daughter sat by me and snuggled up against me. A few minutes later my son walked out the door completely dressed and ready for the day, a rare occurrence. The final line is my middle son who is always trying to make peace with everyone in the house. He gives up so much for everyone else just because he wants everyone to feel loved. A trait from his mama.

The saying yes, but feeling no
The feelings in we try to show
The want to stay but need to go
The being kind despite a foe

This honestly was a representation of love. The sacrifices we make against our own feelings, the need to express and the complication of trying to express our feelings, and the desire to stay close to those we love even when we have paths that don’t always intersect. I feel that a lot of times leaving for work, a desire to stay with the people I love but needing to go to work. The final line represents not just the idea of being kind to your enemies, but being kind despite your challenges. We all have a lot going on and that can bring on a weighty burden, especially in an intimate relationship. Not letting those “foes” stop you from being kind is important.

The village where nobodies from
The fish and bread, to me here come
The unforgiven men the sum
The sacrifice for peace now done

These four lines I feel like are fairly straight forward if you understand the life of Jesus Christ. “Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth?” John 1:46. A statement made by one who would eventually walk the path with Jesus. The bread and fish fed to thousand by Christ and the desire to receive spiritual sustenance from God. The exchange of Barabbas with Christ at the time of his crucifixion and our own personal sins being the reason for his death. Finally, after Christ’s death He promised to leave behind the Spirit of Peace, a gift that came through his sacrifice.

The boy found teaching greater things
The man whose father built great things
The man who sought from lesser things
To turn them all to greater things.

Again an emphasis on Christ’s life, coming from a small beginning with big “shoes” to fill. He also chose his disciples from people that were not considered the most religiously scholared of the day and turned them into great leaders that pushed Christianity into the modern age.

The slowly building summer wind
Increases when we meet a friend
Turn towards them, when they bend
Let kindness be the mutual mend.

The last paragraph was meant to be a mirror of the first. The entire poem was focused around how little or seemingly unimportant things can have big outcomes, the ripples in the waves, the small seed of a tree, and the winds are all aspects of life that literally build and can cause both great damage as well as life giving resources. While some of the lines were linked together a lot of them were individual. Each line signified something small in life that can cause a huge outcome with the final focusing on Jesus Christ and His own seemingly unimportant beginnings especially as regarded by His own people.