-- Unforgiving --
By John Herlihy
Is there anything as unforgiving as the passage of time,
Seconds as drops slipping away in the life that is mine?
Winds howl thru trees, an ocean of blue sky vast, deep,
On the prairie grasses, the frolicking grasshoppers leap.
All of nature seemingly unforgiving, as if it doesn’t care,
The mind struck by wonder while the heart is laid bare.
We too blaze our way thru life without too much giving,
Drowning in the wash of destiny, we too are unforgiving.
Through all the suffering, we forget what has been given,
Sweet accomplishment, fleeting joys, when all is forgiven.
So much asked of us when we ourselves hardly question,
Our ears don’t listen, unattuned to the calls that beckon.
In this unforgiving, cruel, heartless world we go on living,
Finding ways to make things better, seeking love forgiving.
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Copyright ©John Herlihy
Saturday 20 May 2023
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It is the very unforgiven, almost thoughtless, fleeting nature of almost everything living, including us, that seems to drive towards ever more diversity of survivorship over so many who try and lose everything. A natural law of selection Darwin first described, but has been refuted ever since, except by open minded people and scientists.
Your poem tells me, we have no time to be forgiven for our mistakes. Our time is fleeting and we must do the best we can, while we can. A very good lesson in one of your best poems, ever.
Ron