The twilight gathers round my bed, the shadows softly fall, I look upon your faces now and wonder through it all How such a broken vessel bore such radiant light divine, With all the tangled, heavy threads that wove this life of mine. I stumbled through a marriage built on shifting, fragile sand, And let the vows we whispered slip right through a closing hand. Too many little children came to crowd a crowded room, While I was drowning in the dark and sinking in the gloom. My hard-earned education sat collecting dust on shelves, While I spent every waking breath on everyone else’s selves. I handed out my mercy to the undeserving crowd, And silenced every dream I had that dared to whisper loud. I trusted hands that dropped me, gave my forgiveness all away, And fed the fires of deceit that burned up yesterday. The guilt has been a heavy stone I carried on my chest, A relentless, midnight whisper that denied my soul its rest. I never was a perfect saint, my record’s stained and torn, With errors made in midnight hours, and regrets that left me worn. I fell into the ditches where the bitter lessons grow, And drank the aching cup of pain that only fools can know. Yet in the furnace of my faults, a deeper truth took root: That love is more than polished pride, and sorrow bears its fruit. So listen, dearest children, as my final moments near, Forgive the flaws you witnessed and release the silent fear. I loved youpast the boundary lines, beyond the earthly measure, And wrapped your growing lives in all my unforgotten treasure. I leave you not a spotless life, nor gold or grand estate, But a heart that learned forgiveness while it waited at the gate. Though broken by the storms of time, and scarred from head to toe, There is a quiet beauty in the way I let things go. I wore my failures openly, I stumbled through the span, Not flawless, but magnificent—yes, this is who I am.
