Against Karma
You were dishonest, say—
you did something wrong,
were grumpy or even bad to
whomever.
Say your wrongs took place millions of years ago
and you are now a teenage girl.
Can it be real
that you are the cause
of a needless fall
millions of years from now?
Can you believe that how you rebel—
you, a teenage girl—
will someday need to be forgiven
by the granddaughter
of another time?
Your family believes
you make your own luck
and it’s wonderful, your family
and what they believe.
But you are apart from them
and their fantastic hopes.
You say Forgive me every day.
(Source: Conscience Letter 322 and unnumbered letter from 13 January 2014)