Before I Sleep

If I have let
this day pass by
and can’t remember
something good about it,
then I have been ungrateful

and I beg forgiveness.

If I have been involved
too much with me …
my wants and woes,
to see the beauty
that surrounds me,
then I have been played the fool

and I am sorry.

If I have not
stretched out my hands
to loved ones
to show them that I care,
then I have been unfeeling

and I am ashamed.

If I have failed to help
when it was needed,
yet asked others to help me
then I have been selfish

and I apologize.

If I have not seen
the face of God
reflected in a million ways
and places,
then I have been blind

and I ask for another chance

to try again

tomorrow.

— Jim Metcalf
From his book “In Some Quiet Place”

Photo by Dan Hardison
Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina

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