Fourth Annual Wild Violet Writing Contest Winners (2006)
Poetry
— First Place
Mea
Culpa
A Crown of Sonnets
By Judith Goldhaber
(continued)
vii.
I spread my wings and fell into the sky,
beating those wings and rising towards the sun
in ecstasy. It’s true, I am the one
who did this thing, and I cannot deny
I gave no thought to who might live or die.
To tell the truth, when all is said and done
I’d do it all again, and yield to none
my right to live my life as butterfly.
So, mea culpa! Guilty after all!
“I am become death, destroyer of the world,”
said Oppenheimer, as the dark cloud swirled
above the swiftly rising fireball
at Alamogordo, when he lit the fuse:
you’ve seen the headlines and you’ve heard the news.
