III. A life of sorrow and embarrassment

“He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows,
and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces
from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.”
— Isaiah 53:3

I wanted yesterday to mark the start
of Cupid’s Month with some ceremony.
Instead, I got embarrassed — not so smart:
doomed by a Song, accursed by Prophecy.

The socks, they sucked, but I won’t give details
except that one was brown, the other grey.
My life in fact is full of shameful tales
though at this point, my self I won’t betray.

But I can be more candid when my time
has come at last, I’ll prattle with a laugh.
Unloading now just wouldn’t be sublime
nor could inspire if I’d spill all the stuff.

Perspective matters much — nay, it is all!
So meantime, I will tell tales proud and tall.

— Jose Rizal M. Reyes
February 2, 2017

rhyming pattern: abab cdcd efef gg
sonnet type: English Classic 1 (traditionally known
as Shakespearian Sonnet or Elizabeth Sonnet)