Forgive us for bells of which we listened those we didn’t.
Forgive us for ourselves as ourselves.
Forgive us for causes effects.
Forgive us for loving the thing we say we don’t.
Forgive us for unloving the thing we say we do.
Forgive us for seeing not seeing.
Forgive us for hoping for the thing we couldn’t say.
Forgive us for whispers.
Forgive us for disbelief.
Forgive us for shock.
Forgive us for hiding everything.
Forgive us for imprudence.
Forgive us for ferocity.
Forgive us for obliteration.
Forgive us for slyness.
Forgive us for getting what we want.
We are what we want.
From Aurora Americana (Princeton University Press, 2023) by Myronn Hardy. Copyright © 2023 by Myronn Hardy. Used with the permission of the publisher.