Thursday Poem

Surely We Can

Surely we can talk again,
without using cloven tongues
that lisp and hiss
cleft meanings,
disguising our true intent.

Surely we can smile again,
with teeth washed clean
of each other’s blood,
mould lips into the forgiving kiss
Jesus gave to Judas Iscariot.

Surely we can touch palms again
without losing caste,
hold fast in an embrace
that will keep us face to face
as future friends, not yester-foes.

Surely we can age together,
teach your youth and mine,
what they need to know,
about how close we came
to committing joint infanticide.

Surely we can offer a common prayer
in our separate dialects
to our separate, equal Gods.
Have we not proof enough
that my God is not stronger than yours,
nor yours any stronger than mine?

by Fakir Aijazuddin

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