(regarding today’s shootings in Seattle)
Reason unravels
Reasons unravel
Following the rules —
staying within the lines —
is shown to hold no more safety
Anyone can fall . . .
When the perimeter permitted is too small
to let us range
And it grows tighter
narrowing our path until we pace in figure eights
And we are running them like caged cats
in frenzy, beating out our necessary rhythm
in a permission-starved place
where there’s no room for us
There will be breakages
and the rules won’t keep us safe.
Ashes! Ashes!
So it will continue
till one by one
we withdraw consent
to any rules that hem in our compassion
and rationalization that results in isolation
and any, all partitions based on fear
We can’t be safe until we come together
in the place that holds us all,
that holds us tender
Refusing scorn, refusing condemnation.
(The only way to bring someone to justice
is to be just
to banish from within the urge to hate
No lashing out in anger can release us
But grief’s collective wail
experienced in union
may let us see each other,
bring us home.)
©Wendy Mulhern
May 30, 2012