I’ve some concern over the dearth of questions asked
about expressions like
“old wives tales”
and
“trailer trash.”
Who decided “old wives”
had the market cornered
on stories without merit,
to be ridiculed and scorned?
Was it old husbands,
with power, but little sense,
who perpetuated that expression
without fear of recompense?

And what about the expression,
“trailer trash?”
Doesn’t this huge judgement
bound up in two words
strike you as rash?
You say, “Well, we all know
who is
and
who isn’t.”
Do we, now?
Who built this prison?
Now I’ll give you
many people put themselves where they are,
all the while blaming the stars.
But what about those who would reach higher?
Would the label you cherish
assist or hold back
the dreams to which
they aspire?
I refuse to call persons refuse,
though some may throw their lives away.
Where a man lives doesn’t always
measure the size of his heart,
at least I’m pretty sure
that’s what God says.

© Joel Tipple

21-24 But in our time something new has been added. What Moses and the prophets witnessed to all those years has happened. The God-setting-things-right that we read about has become Jesus-setting-things-right for us. And not only for us, but for everyone who believes in him. For there is no difference between us and them in this. Since we’ve compiled this long and sorry record as sinners (both us and them) and proved that we are utterly incapable of living the glorious lives God wills for us, God did it for us. Out of sheer generosity he put us in right standing with himself. A pure gift. He got us out of the mess we’re in and restored us to where he always wanted us to be. And he did it by means of Jesus Christ.
Romans 3:21-24 The Message