In Confidence
©April 9th, 2016
By Vijaya Sundaram
If I say this, will you hate me?
Will you convert or berate me?
Can I trust you with this thought?
Will our friendship come to naught?
If you wish to know, come near
Let me whisper in your ear
While I love our human spirit
And the forms our worship takes,
I cannot love religion,
And the craziness it makes.
I cannot love this God you tout,
Whom everybody seems to know,
Whose ego says, Believe in me,
Or else to hell you’ll surely go.
I cannot trust a God who says
If you believe, you will be saved
And to heaven I will take you
Even if you are depraved.
And yet, I pray for all in need
And wish for hope for humankind
And love not boundaries, save those
That keep hate out, till love they find.
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Today’s NaPoWriMo prompt:
And now, for our prompt (optional, as always). This one sounds simple, but it can be pretty difficult. Today, I challenge you to write a poem that includes a line that you’re afraid to write. This might be because it expresses something very personal that makes you uncomfortable – either because of its content (“I always hated grandma”), or because it seems too emotional or ugly or strange (“I love you so much I would eat a cockroach for you”). Or even because it sounds too boring or expected (“You know what? I like cooking noodles and going to bed at 7 p.m.”). But it should be something that you’re genuinely a little scared to say. Happy (or if not happy, brave) writing!