On Mike Brown


Words fail

Images scorch, spurning the truth

What year is this?

Are you sure?

Is that teargas and justification?

Why, yes--he was black

and male

and breathing

I see why that would scare you

...

This hurts

In places I seldom visit for reasons I rarely acknowledge

This hurts

It burns and stings and bites and sucks and hurts

And the ache is more than skin deep

...

I have five boys

(One natural, four bonus through marriage)

One grandson, four nephews

A godson and dozens more on my emotional radar

How many will escape alive?

Where will I be when I get that call?

How many more calls must we take?

...

God bless America

Land that I love

Where men with guns hate my sons

And clucking tongues cosign their slaughter

What was that?

*sigh*

Why, yes--they kill each other sometimes

A lot of times

Monkey see, monkey do, huh?

Who am I calling a monkey?

Whoever behaves like an animal

...

Michael Brown,

did you give Trayvon a pound?

a fist bump? high-five?

or did a knowing nod suffice?

Did he ask what happened to his Skittles?

I hope you lied

(God will forgive you)

Hope you said they seeped into the ground, became seeds for the rainbow across which we walked brown-hand-in-pale-hand to the Promised Land

On second thought,

maybe we should keep our hands up for a while

just in case

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Guest Post: Marcena Hooks, Writing Process Blog Tour

Image
We're still touring, y'all! Having conquered the mysterious, belligerent assault on my stomach earlier this week--let's hope there's no encore performance--I hereby share Marcena Hooks' contribution to the Writing Process Blog Tour. She is excited to participate, and I gladly yield her the floor. Take it away, Marcena!
Read more

Book Review: "Me and Mom Fall for Spencer" by Diane Munier

Image
When recently asked what she thinks of the [ Twilight fanfiction] world, author Diane Munier said, “What [ Twilight author] SM achieved in my opinion was the ability to make women feel first love….That woman took us into the ache.” I hope Ms. Munier will pardon me for appropriating her words, but that statement perfectly encapsulates the magic of her own writing: this woman takes us into ourselves, moving us with a deeply satisfying story in the process. Through the eyes of her beautifully flawed characters, Munier takes us to the bottom of our souls, revealing everything we are and everything we wish we weren’t. We confront our pasts, unearthing treasures we never knew were there, and baby-step our way toward a future we didn’t know we could have. Munier has been doing it for years under the apt pseudonym “Counselor” in the Twilight fanfiction world, and she does it this time for the masses with her first fanfic-turned-novel, Me and Mom Fall for Spencer. In this p...
Read more

The After-Turkey Toil

Thanksgiving has come and gone, and I hope the day brought you warmth, laughter, and tangible reminders of the beauty in your life. (And if not, here's a hug from my heart to yours.) Our day was full of exquisite cuisine--special shout out to my Dude for making a grilled BBQ turkey breast that made my mother slap me!--and new memories with old friends and family. It was a miracle, a literal answer to prayer, and I was so blessed to see it happen under our roof. But after everyone left, I was alone with the kitchen (point of fact: my Dude was taking people home; otherwise he would have been there with me.) You can imagine how it looked: slightly crumpled foil pans, half-full cups of juice, huge pots that wouldn't fit in the refrigerator, and a white kitchen floor tattooed with food and footprints. As I formed a plan of attack, I remembered those FB posts and Instagram pics of proud chefs with their culinary creations and wondered how many people are just as excited to fa...
Read more