21 September 2013

Portrait of Peace (4)

File:Boston Marathon bombing, first bomb site 54 minute before explosion.jpg
The 2013 Boston Marathon finish line 54 minutes before the explosion.

 (By Aaron "tango" Tang (http://www.flickr.com/photos/hahatango/8652816493/), via Wikimedia Commons)



Gandhi and India went outside
again
and again
living the changes
though beaten and shot
and they made history

How do you, do we, step outside
again?
without knowing the enemy
without weapons
without sweeping 
everyone suspicious off their feet

Pretend we are not targets, but 
peace?
Be peace
Step into a community of peace
Sweep terror off its feet
with love and bravery 

Look around at the stadiums
full, yes
full, and
airports, shops, schools  
Look at the Olympics
Step outside without fear

Step outside North America
Face down 
terror
where it lives between battles
Step outside comfort zones
to witness peace's front lines



Posted at Poets United Poetry Pantry #168, this is the fourth poem in the "Portrait of Peace" five-poem series.   
(I'm not done with the 4th, 5th, and 6th stanzas.)



Copyright © 2013 S.L.Chast





13 comments:

  1. mmm...i like the thoughts within that it takes stepping out to confront terrorism where it is ...not letting it make us live in fear...

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  2. Witness peace's frontlines. Wow! Sweep terror off its feet with love and bravery. Another wow! Lovely message in your poem. It's braver to confront terrorism with non-violence than with weapons, for you have no means of protecting yourself while harming others.

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  3. You are on the roll with your peace poems ~ Stepping outside the lines, stepping out into the streets- that takes courage & guts ~

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    Replies
    1. Yes, Or forgetting reality and wishful thinking.

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  4. to me 'Step outside comfort zones' is vital......very honest expression....

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  5. I really like the idea of stepping into a community of peace, Susan!! You have really written a lot of peace poems this year. Smiles.

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  6. I LOVE this manifesto for peace!!!!! (you should post this again for Dona Nobis Pacem.) I especially love the powerful closing lines.

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    Replies
    1. You mean in a peace globe? Isn't it too much?

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  7. Strong, strong imagery in this powerful call to peace.

    Pretend we are not targets, but
    peace?
    ...
    Sweep terror off its feet
    with love and bravery


    There is no other way, yet the powers that rule our troubled world continue to skirt around it - seeing only what they personally would lose if they were to come the table without weapons...

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    Replies
    1. ...and they hide elsewhere than the battle zones. It is hard to know the enemy.

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