Job 7:2

Like a slave, he yearns for evenings shadows,

   Like a laborer, he waits eagerly for his reward.

(Written 3/27, Posted  4/9 )

In 2004, after a twelve-year hiatus, I began collecting baseball cards again. I chose to build a set and after a while (and a few dollars), I had done so. A variation on that set came out later that year and now eighteen years later, I am still working through completing that variation set. I want to finish it, but I do not want to overspend, and they very rarely make it to market. It also is not a high priority, but for whatever reason, the yearning and eagerly awaiting bring that to mind.

“Servant” was used by the King James and New King James versions, but everyone else went with “slave”.  “Longs for”, “earnestly desires”, and “pants for” were seemingly synonymous options for “yearns for”. Sources were split between “shade” and “shadows”, but I felt the idea was better for the shadows at the end of the day.

I picked “laborer” over “hired hand”. My sources were divided about the “eagerly” or non-modified “waits”. One source actually had “only wants”, so I kept the eagerly to reinforce the mental image. “Wage” and “pay” dominated, but I went with the “reward” from the King James as is seemed more spiritual.

Job is telling us that people in general want the same things. They want rest and rewards from their labor. None of us can work all day every day and none of us can survive without the food and shelter that are expected from laboring.

Some day I hope to complete this set of baseball cards and set it up for display and then hide it in a box until I have no space to keep it or pass on myself. We all have work to do or goals to accomplish. We all look forward to rest or completion. Simple lives to be enjoyed.