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| 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.)
(I'm not done with the 4th, 5th, and 6th stanzas.)
Copyright © 2013 S.L.Chast
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...
ReplyDeleteI do it by forgetting.
DeleteWitness 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.
ReplyDelete"First, do no harm."
DeleteYou are on the roll with your peace poems ~ Stepping outside the lines, stepping out into the streets- that takes courage & guts ~
ReplyDeleteYes, Or forgetting reality and wishful thinking.
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ReplyDeleteto me 'Step outside comfort zones' is vital......very honest expression....
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.
ReplyDeleteI think it's a series ...
DeleteI LOVE this manifesto for peace!!!!! (you should post this again for Dona Nobis Pacem.) I especially love the powerful closing lines.
ReplyDeleteYou mean in a peace globe? Isn't it too much?
DeleteStrong, strong imagery in this powerful call to peace.
ReplyDeletePretend 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...
...and they hide elsewhere than the battle zones. It is hard to know the enemy.
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