Seeking Redemption

She came out one morning
to the sight of a man
working her fields.
Tilling and planting
up one row and down the next.
She looked at him and said,
“Leave this place.
You are not welcomed.”
Not being the response he expected
he returned the next morning
to continue his work.
She awoke more angry than before
and chased him off with a pan and broom.
Years before he had marched
on this land. A part of an army
burning, decimating all that stood.
She found him again the next morning
moving up one row and down the next.
She knew he did not understand.
Calmly she approached and said,
“I remember you. I watched you
burn my fields, murder my husband,
and take my children to be sold.
You come here seeking
a redemption
that is not yours to obtain.
My forgiveness is mine
and only mine
to give.”