(for Ron Glass)
“Why do smugglers need a chaplain?” the Alliance captain asked,
And he never got an adequate reply;
Because on a ship like this we all wear our intentions masked,
But we’re glad to have the Shepherd share our sky.
He’s really very dapper for a man of modest means,
And his manners would do credit to a lord,
So it came as a surprise he was so good with the machines-
And with nearly every other job on board.
He’s been well educated; there’s no question on that score,
And his words of faith are nothing but sincere;
But he’s over-educated when it comes to crime and war,
And we have to wonder what he’s doing here.
He’s steady in a firefight, and useful in a brawl;
The sort of man you trust to watch your back.
It’s clear he knows that Law and Justice aren’t the same at all,
And he’s frightened by a cold death in the black.
“Why do smugglers need a chaplain?” We’ve all asked it once or twice,
During ship’s night when the lights have all gone dim,
And we’ve come to the conclusion, that for all his good advice,
He may need us as much as we need him.
Paul Haynie
2/6/2003