Poetry: Atonement; poem by Opia-Enwemuche Maxwell Onyemaechi


Atonement



today, I was scared to death// as I took my bath under a shower// I could see my sins emerging as lather// before my naked eyes // I knew my life was over.
How can I wash away my sins//so cruel, dirty and dark// when the blood of God has done that?//
Am I being disillusioned by seeing things// or I was beguiled long ago about this?
Can I wash away my sins// if I forced myself on a girl without consent? // how can I deal with my inner mind if I remember my rumpus with a nun?
Will I rather burn-in hell// than speak of the things my eyes saw? //will I forget the things I heard at odd places of cloaked reverends abusing young girls// of parents defiling their children// of church workers relocating offerings to private pockets//of sheep in wolf clothing marauding everywhere.
I am not just an ordinary sinner// I’ve come for atonement// for the sins of yesterday and today// for the pleasures of self and worthless life//I’ve come to be reborn a new person.


Biography:

Opia-Enwemuche Maxwell Onyemaechi is a banker, writer, and poet. His poetry has appeared in Tuck Magazine, WRR, Mojaveheart Review and forthcoming elsewhere. He is the author of The Oracle of Isieke. His manuscript, “A Portrait of Shame,” is looking for a home. Connect with him on twitter @maxxzymusdapoet and on Instagram @maxxzymusdapoet where he writes about hope, humanity and a whole lot from Umuahia, Nigeria.

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