They’re wrongly called the seven deadly sins.
For instance, take the one that’s titled lust.
Why in hell were we arrayed in skins,
if baring them would generate disgust?
And it’s absurd to call someone a sloth
who’s actively engaged in gluttony!
Why else would someone buy a tablecloth.
if not to complement an eating spree?
Although another may be justified
in being wrathful when he feels maligned,
it’s censured coming from the other side.
Then proudly feed with greed on sins consigned
to Nature’s bin. For envy reigns supreme
in those who watch men thrive while they just dream.
Why vainly try to circumscribe our lust,
sloth, wrath, pride, envy, gluttony and greed?
Our Casanovas wouldn’t make a bust,
or Wall Street brokers boast a single deed.
For others would chuck guilt and get there first.
And did we not have sanctions against pride
or render wrath an attribute accursed,
the rich could not take paupers for a ride
without encountering hostility.
If sloth did not with Christian fervor irk
the sensibilities of men who want ability,
we wouldn’t have a laborer who’d work!
And envy’s once progressive income tax
still scarcely makes a dent in money sacks
the rich possess. So why tout deadly sins?
The haves will glean more benefit from them,
while paupers stay content with vitamins
for food, or dreams that come from REM
sleep for affaires de coeur. The shameless pride
of those who castigate the envious
while they walk over them with pompous stride
will gradually grow imperious.
For while the poor tread on the righteous path
toward Calvary, the haves, indulging greed,
will censure them for any signs of wrath
concerning how they heedlessly proceed.
So please dispense with sloth when finding fault,
but mind all strictures with a grain of salt.
INSTANT NOODLES 