Time Enough for Redemption

He poured himself a tall glass of fine wine
To dine on an exquisite sumptuous meal
Meant to make him feel great, so he took
An enticing bait and felt emptiness after,
And he could hear the laughter in the hall
Where a grand ghoulish ball transpired;
And he suddenly felt very tired and mired
In sullen depression with the recession
Of his heart and soul, then the troll came
To bid him goodbye to the day and all
Of his whole misguided way, and he did
Wonder at his own blunder and decided
To take a stroll through the blight of night;
Much to his amazement he gazed at his
Own life as he walked and talked out loud
To no one — there was no crowd — and
Lo! This night became quite the fright as
He caught sight of himself and all he might
Have been but was not for all his life was
Fraught with ill-gotten gain and pleasure,
Not pain … until now, and he wondered
How he might remedy himself, knowing
It could not be with wealth or any stealth;
“Too late!” laughed the troll, joining him
On his stroll, “too late for you to undo…”
But then some strange light pierced thru
Night, almost blinding and binding him
To his place upon the ground, and sound
Came in much the same way — angelic;
“Fine wine with which to dine will not
Fill the emptiness, but you have time till
You breathe your last; only then is grace
Past when you will be fast asleep forever.”
And as the light made him blink, he could
Only think, “Do I, then, still have time?”

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