At times we find ourselves in circumstances
Who are the guilty ones when every road
Yet when all’s said, and done,
Life is cruel, short, equity oft’
Unfair, unfortunate though it may be
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(i) Circumstances
Such as we thought could never come about,
A product of blind fate or reckless chances,
Either or both, we can do naught but doubt;
Our judgment seems to wither as a flower
Plucked and unwatered, fades with every hour.
(ii) Innocence
Must lead to evil? Those who judge them goad
With veiled contempt, but theirs is not the load.
(iii) Culpability
There are no innocents,
There can be none,
For such is Providence.
Takes second place behind
A justice seldom soft,
Frequently blind.
(iv) Consequences
’Tis actions govern culpability;
Choices, if limited, or none at all
Cannot exempt a man who’s doomed to fall;
Pity and sympathy he may deserve,
Those who are wise, their judgments will reserve,
But, ultimately, nothing can be said,
And the consequences rest on his head.