The Coward's Downfall

Stopping just short of judgment,
his mind took a leap

Whose soul rose as substance,
now ready to speak

Words before never uttered,
or spoken in vain

This acknowledgement followed,
crying out in refrain…

“The joy in determination,
the torment by choice

To share in celebration,
we alone can’t rejoice

The critic inside us,
the judger of sins

Is best left in silence,
till it targets within”

As time will remind us,
and these words will recall

All biting reprisal,
—the coward’s downfall

(Villanova Pennsylvania: June, 2016)