Forgiving the Unforgivable

(Lights dim, single spotlight illuminates the speaker, dressed in simple attire. Voice starts trembling, building in intensity) Can forgiveness mend, a childhood, fractured in the dark? Where the scars are a map, etched, not just in flesh, but deeper in my skin? The cold, hard floor remembered the day, innocence shattered begins. Unspeakable gibbering, these scars, are etched, not just in flesh but deeper in my soul. A childhood, fractured, innocence shattered on a cold, hard floor, by the hand, that was meant to hold, the voice that should have adored. "Father," a word twisted, weaponized in the dark of night. A legion of screams, the sting of leather, a suffocating fright. Tears, turned to rage, then a hollow numbness, a child's, silent plea, lost in the raging storm, forgotten, buried treasure seeking answers, a love I'd never see. (Voice cracks, a groaning beat of silence) School and Siblings, a mask, a fragile smile to hide the battlefield within. Each fractured memory, a fragment, a constant fight, to keep the battles I'd win. Teachers, oblivious, to the shadows I couldn't, outrun, The amalgam, Storgevore who terrorized me in dreams, the damage already done. (Years bled into decades, a burden carried with every stride is implied) Trust, a fragile bird, refused to take flight, love, a river long denied. Relationships, poisoned, potential choked by a past I couldn't erase, A prisoner, of my horrid history, forever, trapped in that haunted dark, dank, basement space. (Voice gains strength, a shift in tone) And then, a flicker, a seed of defiance, a question that dared to sing. Yet, was I forever tethered to the chains, forged in that darkened room? Could I, reclaim my story, rewrite the ending of this pain? And, yet, would the scars forever bleed, keeping me, forever chained by Abaddon in blame and shame? (Voice softens, with a newfound resolve) The journey was arduous, a mountain to climb, tears, watering the way. In the storm of prayer, a lighthouse emerged... (pause) guiding lost souls to the baptismal bay. Afflatus: Forgiveness, not for him, but for me, offered a chance, at last, to breathe, A release, from the grip of the past, breaking the chains and finally being forever free. (Voice reaches a powerful crescendo) He may, never walk this path, but, the burden is no longer mine to bear. His actions, no longer define me, his darkness, cannot wear and tear my soul. He'll never know the freedom of forgiveness, I choose, to extend, But, the power lies within me, a burden, I no longer intend to carry. His actions, don't define me, his darkness, cannot tarry. I rise, above the ashes, a mariposa bathed…. in the golden hope of dawn. (Voice softens, a sense of peace settling in) Yet, the scars remain, a testament, to battles fought and won. Yet, they no longer are spoken in pain; a new, song has begun. It's a song, of resilience, of an indomitable life that wouldn't break. The Spirit’s promise, to finding forgiveness, not for him, but, for my own soul, for my beloved, and for the flesh of our flesh’s sake. (Lights slowly fade, leaving the speaker in a quiet strength) Peace, as a fragile Mariposa, takes flight, wings shimmering in the light of the hope, of a new golden dawn.