Our Faith II

by George Prochnik

Originally published on February 1, 1999

Our faith had been on the mantle so long
We no longer felt uncomfortable with it.
It lay between a mask and a shell and
New guests still commented on it;
The unusual shape and coloring made them
Ask where we got it, (usually we didn’t
Tell the story), what it cost (it’s impossible
To say), then, ‘have we had it appraised?’
‘No, [...]