Sometimes forgiveness
Stubbornly refuses and
Sticks in your craw
It fights you
Every step of the way
Dragging its heels
and
Other times forgiveness
Is gentle and easy
Floating in softly
Like a breeze
On a warm summer evening
It just wafts in
You barely
Notice it’s there
Until it’s gone
All you feel is the
Cool air on your skin and
A soundless ruffle
As the feeling
You’ve been holding onto
Leaves you
And in its wake
You are left lighter
Softer, more open
Extra space to love
With your heart wide open
Once again
Jennifer Gurney lives in Colorado where she teaches, paints, writes and hikes. She is a newly published poet, at age 59, with over 100 poems in print thus far. Jennifer has also published commentary about poetry. During the pandemic she joined the online poetry community of The Daily Haiku.