Conflict of Interest ~ Philip Brent Harris
~~~~~
Walking along tree-shaded paths
I have never walked upon before.
Not unknown, except to me, now.
Smell of redwoods, carried to me
On a fresh breeze, the warm sun.
In the vague distance, the ocean,
Perhaps, although too hazy to tell.
I know it’s the right direction but
Far too far to walk, breaking trail,
A jingle of bicycle bells warns us.
Thoughts drift away from beauty
To the strife, sickness and greed
Which floods the land around us.
Do we wonder what we can do
To help make the world better?
Are we on the other side, afraid,
Hating our neighbors, with guns,
Denying the wisdom of science
To claim it’s all a hoax, a fraud,
Watch a man die eight minutes?
Were there warning bells to hear?
A cry went up, people came forth.
No one guards barricades, not yet.
Protests may be inconsequential.
A simple act, truly, until it is not.
Till we hear flash bangs, as eyes
Burn, tear gas, scattered by clubs.
Shattered glass, maybe a chance,
Get some; any moment might be
Your last, same as last 400 years.
Who’s to say what reparation is?
Acceptance, equality may begin it.
Nothing negates our past agonies.
Nothing forgives sin of the guilty.
We must find a way, however hard
Which we walk together, all equal.
Like masks, we wear to protect all.
To protects them from us, us them.
Prove we result from four billion
Years evolution by acting like it.
~~~~~
Peace is Purpose, Nonviolence is Strength, Diversity is Unity, Empathy is Empowerment
~~~~~
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