The Consequence of Innocence

He was big and loud

A thunderstorm

And I, new

Fragile and empty

Lived in shadows of unattainable perfection And epic glory

Constantly reminded of my purpose

To obey

To conform

To serve

Born a slave to religion and pride

Fear was my motivation

I wept often from the rewards of failure

Bruises and solitary confinement

Making me stronger he proclaimed

But resentful and bitter still

I became

A rebel

A burden

An embarrassment

A liability

So I was shipped off and tucked away

Categorized and institutionalized

Sanitized and under rug swept

A statistic

A nobody

Lost and alone

Amongst the other social rejects

Soon to become family

Eventually escaping

I, With tales of embellished adversity

And fictitious and miraculous triumphs

Fled into the wilds of urban entrepreneurialism

Out of the fire

And into the belly of the beast

Consumed by necessity

Devoured by pride

Led by the other lost souls

On a path to nowhere fast

Survival was our aim

And God was my father now

Still distant

Still loud

I soon became invisible like He

I soon became free

Who’d have guessed such a fee