Atheism by Elliot Foree

I’m an atheist,

But I don’t hate faith.

When I found you

on your knees

for a God you cannot see,

I admired it.

Admired your commitment.

Your drive.

Your passion.

I was born into faith,

but I am an atheist.

Years spent

with my head bowed

at the foot of His throne.

Years spent

judging my neighbors,

drowning my personality in verse.

But when I needed Him,

when the sky opened up,

and He was no where to be seen,

I did not understand.

Because what was the pain,

the hate,

if God is gone?

So I unlearned the hate.

I pushed past the hypocrisy,

I set aside my shame.

I reprogramed my mind,

my spirit,

my body.

I replaced my hate,

the one we’d named love,

with compassion.

Who I love

does not damn me.

My lack of pigmentation

does not put me above.

What’s in my pants

does not decide my role.

Choose acceptance,

because tolerance

is no longer an option.

Native of Houston, Texas, Elliot Foree is an aspiring novelist publishing poems and short stories on the side. A fan of romance and cynical humor, they hope to pave their own way in the world.