He dares speak out against
Undeniable injustice and
The machine shrieks wildly,
Facing its own reflection,
Convulsing at the realization
That it has been exposed,
Dreading the possibility of
Having to pay for what its done.
An alert is sounded,
The minions rise,
A massive smoke screen appears,
Fealty to symbols instead of people,
A diversion to avoid talking
About sordid reality.
Unable to feel for
Anyone but himself,
He doubles down on
The only thing he knows:
Putting others down
In order to garner support
For his transparently
Awful agenda,
Cruelty for its own sake,
Pandering to the
Darkest impulses of
His damaged followers.
Short on money for bills
Again this week and unable
To get an advance from either
Of her jobs, she sees an
Upbeat ad on TV assuring
Her that she can get the
Cash she needs if she
Just owns a vehicle.
She walks into the place,
Glances at all the people
Who look just like her.
She signs over her car title,
They let her know the great part
Is that she gets to keep her car,
That it will only be taken away
When she is unable to
Pay back the loan.
Starting from a position
That everyone is broken
And each person is on
His or her own doesn’t
Leave much room for
Empathy or optimism.
Routine condemnation
Does nothing to alleviate
The suffering of untold
Millions who work hard
To eke out a living and
Would be doing much
Better had not people who
View them as deficient
Designed a trap to keep
Them where they are.
Flailing uncontrollably
At unseen foes.
Purchasing implements of violence
That never soothe.
Unable to silence
The constant din.
Reacting out of fear
Instead of love.
Ugh, I can’t believe I have
To take my car in again,
Which means I’ll miss my
Haircut appointment which
Is always so hard to schedule,
Such a pain. Maybe I can stop
By the coffee place…
Oh, I forgot, of course,
They’re closed for remodeling,
Now I have to go to the
Place down the street that
Doesn’t have Wi-Fi,
Or my favorite drink, great.
I can’t function this way,
Guess we can’t all be lucky.
This very moment,
If we choose to,
We can agree to
Love one another and
Come together to build
A world of kindness and
Compassion, a place
We can proudly leave to
Our collective children.
Brother goes off to school
While I stay at home
Tending to the boiling pot
On the stove, scrubbing the
Floor to a fine shine,
Cleaning the streaks off the windows,
Dreaming of being in a classroom
Traveling to colorful new worlds.
