Pick the scab
Press the bruise
Gawk at the news
Stare at the bronze serpent
Replay the scenes of our mistakes
How long will we remain fascinated by our own woundedness,
as if our ability to trip and bleed, our inclination to war and rage,
are new discoveries that lend credibility to the theory of our humanity?
Let me just break
without the shame,
Fall down without
anyone clucking,
Err and move on,
Look in the mirror
and be at peace.
I am limited; I keep
reciting this truth to myself
as often as the sun rises and the moon fades.
O God, let me claim a sabbath from self-guilt
and graciously accept these scars of humanity.