The Prisoner's Lament

A possibly controversial poem focusing on a prisoner's thoughts.

The Prisoner's Lament

I'm here for a crime committed long ago
It seems unfair and yet I know
That the past doesn't go away
And justice must have its day.

The person I hurt has tracked me down
And now with lawyer he's gone to town
He said that justice must be done.
And compensation must be won.

My time of madness I tried to erase
With secret living and amended ways
But all people see now is my shameful past
All the good I did since is forgotten fast.

So here I am rejected and shamed
Bombarded with insults, curses and names.
The sentence was passed as the law demands
And now my accuser is rubbing his hands.

His exaggerated story found sympathetic ears
And I'll be locked up for several years.
Time to reflect and time to begin
To count the cost of my long ago sin.

But as I sit in my lonely cell
I can't help but think I'm a victim as well
I didn't choose the way I felt
And you can only play the hand you're dealt.