Past Tense

When people bring up

   our past, using it

      as a substitute for

         the here-and-now us,

      they are attempting

   to create tension

out of history.

Never mind that they've

   never considered who they were

      and what they believed,

         said, and did way-back-when.

If who we were long ago

   is who we are now,

      we've probably wasted

   all those years; but

if we've learned differently

   and better, if we've grown

      and become both more giving

   and forgiving, then grace

has seen the light of our days.

Don't let the dredging

   of past tense pull you

      back out to sea

   by its undertow.

Swim across, not against

   the riptide, and let

      grace’s waves bring you

   to love’s secure shore.

© 2015 Todd Jenkins