The fact that you were once unkind is a friend to me now,
And for the sorrow that I felt back then,
I would feel for my own transgression,
Unless my nerves were made of brass or hammered steel.
For if you were shaken by my unkindness,
As I was by yours, you must have gone through hell,
And I, like a tyrant, have not considered
How I once suffered similarly under your crime.
Oh if our night of sadness could have reawakened
My deepest feeling, how hard true sorrow hits,
And if only I had tended to you as quickly as you did to me
The humble remedy that heals wounded hearts!
But your offense now becomes a fee;
My mistake forgives yours, and yours must forgive me.