Gaza

Photo by Jennie Roberts Jenkins

A name with so much history,
a name with so much age;
a name with so much violence,
a name with so much rage.

Seventy-six years after
the UN proposed coexistence,
the territory was divided,
amidst a flurry of resistance.

As colonial occupiers tepidly withdrew,
and feigned to hold their breath,
tensions rapidly escalated,
generating violence and death.

Fifty-six years after
the so-called six-day war,
bombs are still exploding
and death exudes even more.

So fitting, isn’t it,
that it’s called a strip,
since many of its inhabitants
had their humanity fully ripped.

Extremism is the cancer of our time.
Its raging fire burns, despite the ruse
that we’re not responsible for the flame.
Moral legitimacy, the lifeline we can’t afford to lose.

No matter what we tell ourselves,
the tree our fearful chop is felling
falls on both us and our neighbor;
there’s no healing without truth-telling.

The question going forward,
if we dare to cock our ear,
is, “Can we learn to live together,
without the hate and fear?”

Continuing our current trajectory
of annihilation any and everywhere;
don’t bother worryin’ ‘bout a future hell,
‘cause I’m pretty sure we’re already there.

© 2023 Todd Jenkins