Fast Asleep

I whispered to my interrogator,”
We made some mistakes.

We?

Did I name you
my accomplice?

Or have I now realized
the multitudes living
inside of me?

I awoke ecstatic.

I thought I had little
to offer this world.

But now I know
I can offer my life
a thousand times
in sacrifice.

---

“To be able to throw one’s self away
for the sake of a moment,
to be able to sacrifice years
for a woman’s smile –
that is happiness.”

— Hermann Hesse

---

This poem was originally shared as part of Brian’s Daily Poems on September 1, 2020.