Regretting Sin! Poem by Raouf Reda

All the sins remembered,
Those within and without.
Unto me callously done;
With equal care meted out.
I measure afresh each time,
As I probe those glaring holes,
The faults in my own mind,
And the hollows of my soul.

Ah, these dim, dark places
Reveal what they withold
My most hypocritical angels
And the giggling demon horde.
Dead gods, heroes, and victims,
All veritable prophets of truth,
Each with a face all my own,
My iniquities are their roots.

So here I stand, once again,
At the edge of my own abyss,
Unconcerned with the world around,
Itself uncaring of my bliss.
I wonder as I try
To forgive, and then to forget
As I beg forgiveness of those
That may hold no regret.

I'm hoping on an off chance
That they too might now stand,
In a similar place of justice,
For redress; my tears turn bland.
With a dimming memory of hurt
I reach out to them once more
Until I tire of the silence
That inevitably unfolds...