The Forces of Regret
By John Herlihy

In our sinews quietly live the forces of regret,
Intentions and actions we might never forget.
Longing for a time when innocence was near,
Longing for a place where shadows held no fear.

A wrong decision leads to results most morose,
That gnaw edges of our heart drawing ever close.
I regret I wasn’t kinder to strangers that I met,
Their kindness to me always a source of regret.

That bungled love, an untimely death, all lost,
Many incidents gone, somehow at great cost.
Sadness lies deep, regret my serenity steals,
Why swallow our days with useless appeals.

Do an evil deed and you will no doubt lament,
We cure penitent sadness with good will spent.
Who has not lived, lost, seen the watches of night,
Words left unsaid, deeds undone, with no delight.

Regret happily rides the wings of shame and guilt,
Clouding our days until our moody emotions wilt.
Regret shall find its harvest in the frontiers of evil,
Searching amid the caverns within life’s upheaval.

Pieces of our lives slip away that we often forget,
Forgetting only arouses deeper feelings of regret.
As the days pass, let regret be on the lips of others,
Regret serves no useful purpose and only smothers.