by Jeral Williams

Secrets from darkness past
those about lusts, lapses and lies,
like dust on a high shelf are cast
to gather and grow, without prying eyes.
Often myself not knowing
hidden from view and growing
sins dwell, and swell.
I’m ashamed to look, the site forsook,
until I repent and seek forgiveness.
Confession wipes the known,
to God I entrust the unknown.
The more I reveal, the more forgiven I feel.
The more forgiveness I accept, 
the more forgiving I become.
God – others – self,
 aligned on a clean shelf.
Sins confessed,
but regretfully — try as I may
as dust always returns, often so do they.

Jeral Williams is a poet living in Mobile, Alabama. He is a retired professor whose Christian journey has been long and winding. He has published “Being a Proverbial Student,” a reflection on the need for Christian students to pursue knowledge, and “A Sunset Without Dawn,” a collection of poems about grief over the loss of a daughter. His weekly blog can be found at his website: proverbialstudent.com.