Monday, April 27, 2015

Race Cards Shuffled....NaPoWriMo #35

My son studies and loves history at a rate that is deeper than many college students. He is fascinated by assignations and wars. So, of course, Martin Luther King comes around in his studies as well as Hitler. They were on the opposite sides of the coin of racism and I often tell him that.
Today, when he was getting off the bus, he was yelling the word “racism” to someone on the bus, but when I questioned him about it, he wouldn’t say who or why. Later, he told Martin a little bit that the kids on the bus were discussing what they thought the word meant. His first question to me off the bus was, “Mama, what is racism?” I explained it several different ways to him. Still the question stuck with me as he repeated his question to me over and over (as he often does).

Making Best of Enemies
Racism didn’t begin with Martin Luther King
It is a very ancient thing
When someone looked at the shape of one’s leg
Or the color of hair or if that person ate eggs
The looker deemed it all unworthy
To not to be and called it “dirty”
What makes us look askance
at someone because they can’t dance?
We choose and say one is right and one is wrong
And we fight or struggle amongst the throng
People are people is what we say
But how is that shown today?
We are making judgements right and left
Sitting on the opportunities of others bereft
The opposite of this is grace
To judge not from race
Or creed, or purpose, or positions
Going out of our box creates imposition
To find that uncomfortable zone of friendship
Somewhere in an uncommon kinship

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