A WAY WITH WORDS: THE POET'S ATONEMENT

Like the serpent was for forbidden fruit,
The devil's advocate I've become,
Bearing a countenance of lachrymose seduction,
Having taken a vow of infernal luxuriance,
The devil's advocate I've become,
Poor, poor dear...
much adherence here.

Like the Fall was for Mortalkind,
The Saviour's Cause I have shunned,
Bearing a soul of eternal pilgrimage,
Having taken a vow of apostasy,
The devil's advocate I've become,
Blind, blind seeker...
Ah! But what an eloquent speaker!

CLAUDIUS' HYMN

Heaven hath no fury like that of a devil born.
When I was born they say the Earth shook with pre-ordained doom,
And God wept with unfettered gloom,
Mortal eyes looked away in digust and shame,
As I reveled in my post-natal fame,
For a fate of Rage and a sickness of mind,
Had already put me in quite a bind,
I am the Eternal Child of Nature's Being, raw and wild,
Come to fruition in one lone soul-
Yet sooner or later, it must blow-
It must blow,
With the force of a wrath justified and true,
For where two rights make infinite wrongs,
Faith in Truth, one must renew,
This heart is deeper than you will ever know,
And if I die drowning within myself,
At least I will have earned, one less foe.