***The*First*Judgement***

Little Boy Brite
   shed his wings
   of innocence today
   in an impromptu feat.
They glistened in the sun's light
   as they fell down
   towards an earth,
   cold and grey.
The angels turned to whisper
   and melodious giggles
   of scrutiny
   filled the tiny night air.
Awaiting his fall,
   they gathered to see,
   and pushed the tufts
   of clouds aside.
Only, Little Boy Brite
   didn't fall as expected.
Instead, he began to float
   towards the moon
   in the December sky,
   with his head hung in shame.
But it was only then that he realized,
   to the angels' amazement,
   that tiny lights were shooting
   into the black night
   from where his wings once
   were placed on his back.
We've come to know Little Boy Brite's
   tiny lights
   as shooting stars
   and his shameful act
   as a mistake.
Even his shimmering wings remain
   to guide us
and show
   that this cold grey earth
   is ultimately forgiving.

Written on December 7, 1999