A way to evade guilt.

The word albatross is sometimes used metaphorically to mean a psychological burden that feels like a curse. It is an allusion to Samuel Taylor Coleridge's poem The Rime of the Ancient Mariner. The albatross is then literally hung around the mariner's neck by the crew to symbolize his guilt in killing the bird. Yes, this is how I feel guilt. As if an albatross has been hung around my neck. But I hastily get rid of guilt by casting the albatross into the sea. But there’s an easier, preventive way. Never kill an albatross. And by all means, never allow a dead bird to become your necklace. --Jim Broede