Demeaning words,
          so often heard
                                      within an angry mind.

Resentful thoughts,
          so seldom caught,
                                     commit a spoken crime.

And then - too late -
          I hesitate,
                              constrain my reckless tongue.

And realize
          my spiteful cries
                                       can never be undone.

What grief I build,
          what tears are spilled,
                               what walls are quickly born.

What distance grows,
          what closeness goes,
                                what trust is cruelly torn.

How long will live
          the pain I give?
                                  How long will echos peal?

How long to mend
          a wounded friend,
                                   a hurting heart to heal?





Copyright © 1992 by Gerry Edwards