There once was a woman
who held the world in her hands.
Blessed and lacking nothing,
revered by many and envied by most.

One day she received a warning,
“Cast your eyes onward, for the
things closest to you are farther
than you think. If you fall before sin,
you will lose the path
and must soon meet Fate’s end.”

The woman beheld the curse
and buried it deep within.
But still Fate found her
and declared the seven sins.
On the first day greed came.

The terror of loss,
a never-ending game
where the mind fills with
excruciating twists and turns.

 Wrath arrived on the following day.
Pangs of fury like blood red thunder.
Footsteps stomp faster and faster,
trampling over the woman’s treasures.

 Sloth then took her by the throat.
Things lost and long forgotten,
a well full of dreams
handed over to the unrighteous.

 Pride became the heart’s poison.
Taking the host’s throne,
invading all consciousness
to hurt loved ones rather than one’s own dignity.

 Lust, greed’s companion.
The curse of lethal passion,
the haunt of temptation
lingering on the following silence.

 Gluttony then greeted the woman.
A heavy burden hung around the neck.
Quite a shame,
but she should not have swallowed
more than she could.

 Envy clouded her eyes.
A monster grew from within,
and nothing was seen or heard,
only taken.

 And before long, the woman surrendered
under the seven deadly sins
that had stripped her bare
and empty handed.
The spirits call, for she is to come
and meet Fate’s end.

By ESTHER KANG
Staff Writer