saint
artificial nimbus glowing behind her head,
she takes her staff and knights herself
once for chastity, twice for obedience.
unseen is the charred heart in its iron cage,
a heart blackened with the succulent sins
of a life lived in deliberate ignorance.
in private she prays for deliverance,
yet when she awakes, she turns and
lusts. and fornicates. and succumbs.
the call to sin is tasty, ever satiating.
her nimbus flickers against a greying sky.
Cynthia Buell Thomas
Sat 18th Jan 2020 16:55
Brilliant!