Destiny

Brutally abused as a
Child, deprived of even
The most basic security,
She comes of age
Tempted to follow the
Same path, plenty of
People around more than eager to
Help her fulfill that prospect.

She looks inward,
Realizing that there still
Shines at her core a
Beautiful jewel drawing
Its resplendence from compassion
Rather than self-loathing,
Courage instead of fear,
Peace over anger.

It’s only in later years
That she begins to process and
Comprehend what happened
To her and how she took her
Pain and bid it goodbye,
Chose not to perpetuate the hurt,
Decided that her destiny
Was to spread love.

Stories

He informs everyone that
It was the other person’s
Fault, that he had nothing
To do with it, just an
Innocent bystander felled
By unprovoked malice, an
Exposed infant at the mercy
Of a ravenous creature.
It’s a tale that people believe,
Not by virtue of it having
Any merit, but rather because
They tell the same stories.

I’m Not a Racist

I’m not a racist but
I just don’t trust
Those people.

They lie.
They cheat.
They steal.

They’re
Not
Like me.

We have
Nothing
In common.

It’s always
Been
This way.

There’s just a
Natural order
To things.

I resent
Your
Insinuations.

This
Conversation
Is over.

We Arrive

We arrive at
The moment we
Knew would come but
Have desperately tried
To avoid,
Fidgeting nervously,
Trying not to look at one another,
The weight of everything
That came before
Urging us to forget.

Remain the Same

They look at him
In horror, disgust.

He doesn’t fit the mold,
Isn’t like them.

Discomfort caused by
Unfamiliarity.

Stultifying averageness,
Stay in the lines.

Lack of internal insight,
Loss of perspective.

Remain the same
At all costs.

Beheading
Extraordinary flowers.

Trinkets

He loses no sleep over
Being the one who haunts
Their slumber, visits at
The most inopportune times,
Interrupts otherwise happy
Moments, the one memory
That can’t be erased,
The action unforgotten,
Indelible, an unignorable
Placidity-staining mark.
He goes merrily along with
His life, leaving other
Such trinkets in his wake.

Blend In

What are you being?
What have you become?
Walking down the street
Looking down,
Not up,
Not around,
Hoping to blend in
With the surroundings,
Pass through unnoticed
So no one can utter
What you already know.

Rather than Compete

Human beings regularly
Show extraordinary altruism,
Helping each other in
Times of desperation,
Supporting one another
Without expectation of
Personal gain, building
Caring bonds across social
And cultural lines.
Former strangers become
Close friends through
Gestures of kindness.
It’s been proven over and over
That people don’t have to fight,
That they can share resources
Rather than compete,
Transcend greed and coexist
In peace and harmony,
As long as they don’t heed
Those who have something to
Gain from perpetual discord.

Two Brothers

Two brothers grow up
In the same family.
It’s not a particularly
Wonderful or unusual environment,
Filled with constant berating and
The weight of persistent unhappiness.
Nobody is praised in this house
And everyone is encouraged,
Both explicitly and implicitly,
To adopt the view that the world is
A hopeless place where you
Take your lumps and deal with it,
Grab what’s yours and hang on.
Not much light enters, but
That’s not the end of the story.
The boys grow up. One never escapes
The shadows of his past, the other
Helps people blossom.