manchester

some will  

         build

   a wall

out of flowers and candles,

cards and tweets,

photographs and memories,

fears and tears, a place

where we can come

and let our tears drop

into that river

which longs to cleanse

the streets of grief;

some would

         build

   a wall  

out of rhetoric and

   platitudes, the

old accusations placed

word by word to reinforce

suspicions based on ignorance,

arrogance grounded in privilege,

beliefs founded on untruths;

some long to

         build

   a wall

around speech

with which they disagree,

enclosing faiths

they are taught are unbelievers,

between people who

are not enough like them;

a bridge could be

         built

between shattered hearts

and dreams turned to ashes,

between those who are misunderstood

and those who are misinformed,

between neighbors who have lived there forever

and immigrants longing for a community,

between people of all faiths and none

who share the common commitment

to peace, justice, love, and hope

but sometimes

it is just easier

to be wall builders.

© 2017 Thom M. Shuman