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I Am Ashamed
I am ashamed—but I stand unbowed.
I have lived with idle hands,
while men bled, built, fought, and fell.
I hid from fire, feared the flame,
counted comfort as courage, silence as strength.
The cries of the world pierced my soul,
and I turned, trembling, from the call.
Yet shame shall not hold me wholly.
It steels my heart, it drives my hands.
I will rise, though late, and labor,
though courage falters, though weakness gnaws.
I shall shape, I shall fight, I shall give,
lest my soul rot in cowardice eternal.
I bow to none but the measure of my deeds—
and though the night presses close, I remain unvanquished.
Copyright ©
James Mclain
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