Opening Our Hearts - Poem by Raymond A. Foss

Something corrosive
when we are walled-off
from our neighbors
when the sameness defines
our sense of community
All of us together
stronger as a nation
feeding the fuel of democracy
in the marketplace of ideas

Yet something has gone wrong
the scales grossly unbalanced
the harpies alone
seem to be on the stage
shouting bile,
estrangement from one another
feeding on our fears
that which alone divides

We need to open our hearts
to stand in the shoes of our neighbors
all of us need to listen
before we speak a word
to hear their perspective
respectfully silent
maybe in being truly open
can the rhetoric be toned down

Now may be the moment
in the midst of collective anguish
a nation crying
for those lost in a square
the public forum
open to all comers
was a place of a massacre
of a poor deranged mind

We need to gather together
as we did today in silence
to commit to the commonality
the central thread of our creed
all of our blessings
the freedoms we cherish
each of them stronger
if we see ourselves as one nation
with just different voices
each one worthy
to be heard out of respect

January 10, 2011
after the national moment of silence
January 10, 2011 at 11:00am EST
for the Tucson shooting victims
and hearing some NPR coverage
as I picked up our 9 year old from school

Copyright by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage.