Ode to Americans
Last edited Sun Jan 31, 2016, 11:29 AM - Edit history (1)
My "together" post. #notmeus
Ode to Americans
Because you believe your prosperity depends on my poverty,
Your hope depends on my hopelessness.
Because you behave as if your wellness depends on my illness,
Your joy depends on my despair.
Because your life of privilege depends on my life of inequality,
Your sense of security depends on my lack of it.
Because you were taught that your life matters more,
My life is perceived to matter less.
Because your power depends on my powerlessness,
Empathy cannot find its way in.
But I know.
I remember a well-known “secret,”
That zero-sum is a mirage.
Because I am you,
You are me.
My life is tied up in yours.
If only you could bother to seek,
To seek through eyes of love rather than eyes that fear.
With curiosity instead of contempt,
With clarity instead of confusion.
With courage instead of indifference.
Your success need not depend on my failure.
Your pleasure need not depend on my pain.
A plus for one need not depend on loss for another,
Because a loss for one is a loss for all.
You say the fittest survive - alone,
But I know better.
I know the cooperative thrive - together.
= new reply since forum marked as read
