It turned out that I, too,
was able to cash in the chip,
was able to fall into the thought
that transcended the problem entirely

In my mind I could see you washed clean –
not needing reform, not needing
torturous penance to pay

And none of the tokens
I may have had stashed,
none of the tallies of wrongs to be righted,
needed to be redeemed  –
they were gone  –
the great hole where they had been
was filled with light

I was silent for a long time
pondering this,
feeling the space within me
so much larger
than I ever thought I was.

©Wendy Mulhern
July 3, 2021