Poem of the Week, by Danez Smith
The man in the white shirt, black pants, and briefcase, the one who stepped in front of the tank in Tiananmen Square and just stood there. The girl in the long dress who slid a flower into the barrel of the gun the officer had trained on her. The woman who ended up becoming a second mother to the boy who murdered her own son. In the face of justifiable horror at Israeli and Palestinian deaths and unjustifiable antisemitism, these are the people I’m thinking about these days.
Little Prayer, by Danez Smith
let ruin end here
let him find honey
where there was once a slaughter
let him enter the lion’s cage
& find a field of lilacs
let this be the healing
& if not let it be
For more information about the wondrous Danez Smith, please check out their website. Note that a version of this post first appeared in 2017.
I’m thinking of the man in the white shirt and the black pants, the one holding a briefcase, who stepped in front of the tanks in Tiananmen Square and stood there. I’m thinking of the girl in the long dress, the one who slid a flower into the barrel of the gun the officer had trained on her. I’m thinking of the woman who began a conversation with and ended up becoming a second mother to the boy who murdered her own son. I’m thinking of this tiny beautiful prayer by Danez Smith. A new year to all. May ruin end here.
Alison McGhee 