We all think we would
Have been the good guys in that story,
That we would have refused fascism’s demands,
We think we would have had the foresight,
The readiness to do the unpopular,
Until it happens on one’s own soil,
And then one is left in one of a few camps,
Those that acquiesce,
Those that refuse,
And those that just don’t know what to do,
What to do when humans are contained like cattle
With the label illegal,
What to do when realities of an angry mother Earth means this was no fault of their own,
What to do when being a good citizen conflicts with being a good person,
What to do when the question “what do I do?” is real
and not a hypothetical “what would I do?”
But rather ”what will I do?”
Tag: refugees
What Comes Next
We are cutting
Ties to our siblings,
Because imaginary lines
Dictate whose lives we should value,
Whose skin should get in,
What we should allow authorities in power to do to them,
This is the slippery slope,
That leads to the unspeakable deeds,
That leads to giving up souls,
For the sake of peace of mind via apathy,
And here we stand,
Where others before us swore we would never again go,
But here we are,
And all hands are red,
As we shuffle aimlessly wondering
What to do,
Trying to remember
What comes next.