The great burden has lifted
My past has been sifted
I can take a breath with ease
Now that I’ve risen from my knees
I gave my mind some breathing room
By examining what I assume
My old beliefs cannot be erased
But, with reason, they can be replaced
Though I’m late, I still think I can
Start making myself into a man
Who believes only what he sees
Now that I’ve risen from my knees
This poem, like several others from 2014 and early 2015, refers to
my journey from Christianity to atheism. By the time I wrote
this poem, I had finished what my wife calls my “atheist manifesto”, but hadn’t
yet told the world about it.