I stand determined
With feet planted
A long-handled ax
The helve smooth in my hands
I raise it over my head
Bring it down with force
A great overhead arc
Makes contact with the door
I am aware my anger
Is as strong as the steel blade
Again and again I strike
My chest heaves with the effort
Leaving the walls gaping
Again and again I strike
My arms ache with the effort
Leaving this hideaway
Shattered and splintered
The way my family
Was splintered
There can be no hiding
Behind broken walls
The flaws in
our family life
Are like pulled carpet threads
Overlooked in their familiarity
Still part of a colorful tapestry
The truth in
our stories
Seeks a home of forgiveness
Sheltering arms to have and to hold
Where failure and judgment do not share a bed
The
realities we create
Are tested against each other
We come undone, then together
Open wounds and open arms
The bones of
our fathers
Lie in sacred ground
Ensouled by voices that speak to us
Only in our dreams
Rivers flow
with random questions
As we seek to reclaim a past that is ours
Almost lost under the gaze
Of ancient and knowing trees
We the people watched in horror
As Serve and Protect dropped to its knees
Our trust snapped and flailing like a live wire
Thrashing on the ground, sparking outrage
We the people refused to be placated
With excuses and empty promises of change
This time we lifted the curtain on the Show of Force
By filming our realities without edit
We the people cried out for our mamas
Our sons, our fathers and daughters
Our neighbors, our friends
And we answered with, “Never again!”
