Circling around each other,
Testing the attraction and repulsion
Of their orbits
The tiny details that mean so much
That cut deeply,
Or elate.
Who is first,
Better,
Faster,
Prettier,
Meaner,
Cooler,
Smarter
How to teach them to fly above,
to see the birds eye view,
the long-range sweetness of good ideas, hope, love.
Empathy and justice
Sacrifice and labor
Joy and loss and recovery.
Big ears,
Buck teeth,
Anxiety that pops pimples and vomits,
Club uniforms of long straight hair and leggings,
The last one to get it.
Dark skin,
Light skin,
Asian eyes,
and Indian Jhumka earrings,
The flash of braces and curves.
“No, you can’t sit here” social order and submission,
Their minds so full of potential,
So vulnerable.
Left alone too long and the thoughts become razor sharp –
To feel, escape, jump off the edge.
Don’t go.
We need you. You need you.
Hope is built –
Friend by friend
Moment by moment
Chance by chance
Hold by hold
Year by year
I see you working. I see you.
(written in a middle school cafeteria during 3 lunch periods full of kids)