Month: January 2015

Those benefitting from privilege
Think they have it rough.
They’re about as bad as
Kicking, screaming infants

Being dragged by their mother
Down a shopping isle,
Bursting with sobs
And decorated with tears.

“We have rights!”
“I want this, I want that.
Gimme, gimme, gimme!”
“No, you don’t need that!”

“Now, be quiet and stop crying,
Or I will call your father,
And he can deal with you!”
Peace, peace, peace!

We have what we need,
We have what we want,
We have many things
We take for granted

Or that we don’t want
And don’t appreciate.
How have you been blessed
In ways that you don’t even

Think about?
Aren’t we all just little kids
Pitching a fit,
As God tries to mop up our mess?

Spears fly through the air,
They aim at my heart.
But I will not be deterred.
I will fight with all my might
To continue this journey.

Rivers overflow.
The tidal wave has come!
It floods the streets,
And fills the houses
Of innocent families.

The earthquake ripples
Through the ground,
“They are here,” someone cries.
Gigantic horses gallop
Through the carnage,

Crushing men, women and children.
On top of these steeds
Ride men clothed in armor,
With large steel swords,
The better for the cutting down.

Ripping through flesh,
Stabbing, slicing.
Heads role onto the ground.
Torches are lit and thrown
Into buildings.

Where do these men come from?
Is it from afar?
Or are they members
Of families and clubs,
Churches and businesses?

What has caused
The change in their hearts?
What has darkened their souls?
What makes them cold
To the murders and mayhem?

This is my son, my daughter.
This was my teacher, my friend.
“You have shamed us,” a women cries.
“You have betrayed your families,
Your friends, and your own hearts.”

“Where does the hatred come from?
Why does it start in men?
What angers them, twists them,
Shrivels their hearts, and strangles
Their souls? Why do they hurt us?”

Walls crumbling,
As I do my best
To build them up.
Creatures crawling
Through my head,
Screaming insults
To the end.
People walk by
As I sell my wares,
Scowling at the tattered words
I beg to share.
Trying to come up
With something constructive,
But all I find
Are dust balls and dirt.
Should I make a mud pie?
I might need some water.
Too much to ask, you say.
I understand.
Those of us
Wondering where
Our next crazy idea
Will rear its ugly head,
Don’t stand a chance
Against the “in crowd”.
What is it, anyway,
That makes people exclude
Others who are different?
Xenophobia, the doctor says.
Yes, and, perhaps,
A desperate desire
To hide their own
Unique identity and insecurities
By focusing on a few
Superficial, inconsequential
Meaningless pursuits.
Perhaps,
I judge where I shouldn’t.
Maybe I should be looking
At the positive side
Of tribal culture.
After all, the “us versus them”
Mentality serves to protect,
Does it not?
Well, perhaps it destroys the
Protector and protected
As much as the objects
Of their scorn.
For alienation
Cuts both ways,
It is violence,
Without even considering
The physical
Manifestations.
Surely,
The social and psychological
Damage to the tribal members
And to those on whom they prey,
Is enough to fear and dread.
The murder, rape, assault and battery
Are there, to be sure,
But not in polite conversation.
So, where to, then?
Another round for the house,
On me.

God
Hands reaching out
Hands helping up
Healing hands
“Who touched me?”

Be free
Be healed
“Your faith has made you well.”
“Kill and eat.”
“Do not consider evil what I have declared to be good.”

“If your brother stumbles…”
Take my hand
Lift you up
Dance
Love from your heart

Come and gather
In my name
Crushed and spread
Across the ocean
Throughout the mountains

Get along
Make it work
Make it happen
Get going
Take the trip to the other side.

Feel.
Be with me here and now.
Let’s do this together.
Let’s sing a new song.
“How long must we sing this song?”

Do it together.
Be free.
Be yourself.
God is within you.
Touch my robe.

Make a road
To wherever you’re going.
Follow your soul
To wherever it takes you.

Believe in yourself.
Believe there is a God,
Because to not believe,
Is to give up.

There is still good
In this broken world.
There is still hope
In people’s hearts.

Keep trying.
Keep giving.
Keep holding on
To whatever you believe in.

Strive to improve
Yourself.
Help others
Do the same.

But expect no one
To change for you.
Only you
Are accountable to you.

We are all free
To create our own destiny.
Take whatever talents
God has given you,

And create
Something meaningful,
Something beautiful,
Something new.

God has given us all
A spark of himself
Deep down in our hearts.
Find God in yourself.

And make him proud!

Sometimes,
Words cannot express
What the heart
Knows to be true.

As sure as I am
Of what I think
The truth is,
It may be just the opposite,

But just as true,
For you.
Let us agree
To disagree,

And let our faults
Become virtues,
As we seek
A better understanding

And a more peaceful
Coexistence
With each other.
We can still be friends.

I think that
What you say
In complete contradiction
To my truth

May be more important
Than anything
I can say.
That is because

You are important
To me.
May your heart
Be filled with peace.

To resist evil
Without raising a hand
In violence.

To withstand abuse
Without
Throwing back insults.

To lay down
One’s life
As a sacrifice.

To remain peaceful
And accepting,
Even when frustrated.

To love,
To give,
To be one with all,

Even those
Who threaten
One’s life.

This is
True
Strength.

Evil
Cannot be overcome
By evil.

Only
Love
Can do that.

There may be
Many lives lost
In the process,

But that
Is already happening.
Why not

Try
Something
New?