Confession

I want to confess
to every sin that ever was
and each day I didn’t think of you
but that would not be true.

I want to confess
to emptiness of heart
but mine spills with grief and regret
that I did not put up a fight.

I want to confess
to blaspheming loudly
and cursing in your defence
but that wasn’t me –

I swear silently in poems.

Kim M. Russell, 9^th April 2018

My response to The Poetry School NaPoWriMo Prompt for Day 9: The Sacraments

Ali reminds us that the seven Catholic sacraments are Baptism, Confirmation, the Eucharist, Reconciliation (Confession), Anointing of the Sick (sometimes known as Last Rites or Extreme Unction), Holy Orders and Matrimony. He says that similar rites to mark similar passages in life and expressions of faith can be found in many other faiths and cultures. Marriages and funerals in particular are near universal.

For today’s poem he would like us to write a poem about any one of the seven Catholic sacraments, or a rite or ritual from another faith, culture or tradition (and these can be secular too). Our example poems are Gwendolyn Brooks’ ‘the rites for Cousin Vit’, Michael Donaghy’s ‘The Brother’ and Denise Levertov’s ‘The Ache of Marriage’.