"Unwritten Forgiveness" John C. Mannone

Unwritten Forgiveness

John C. Mannone

If only there could be a way

to make those words disappear,

unwrite them from your ears before

they find their way to your heart,

if only I could unpierce the flesh

of your trust caused by the 2-pronged

pitchfork vee in the word forgiveness,

the stuck-in-the-throat gutteral gee

that’s there when I try to say I’m sorry,

and the sharp chop of apology,

that also cuts into my own heart,

then maybe those ineffective pleas

for forgiveness, with their failed

balm, and their stinging antiseptic,

wouldn’t have to hurt us both so much.

Poet’s Notes: In this poem, I work with the sound of words as a play on how our words may sound to our spouse/significant other.

Editor’s Note:  Ah, a lament that all lovers should understand.