Invitation

 

I bow and thin my eyes before the outrageous beauty

of this tortured prison planet.

Old man Mark coddles his roses and grapes.

Martha weaves scarves for little girls,

boys, grown men, quiet ladies.

I had bent my fingers to carving wood

and my hiding soul to words of poetry.

 

But Alas!  I could not escape the blood of condemnation.

I, like nearly all, was blessed by an invitation

to join the group.  Be one of us.

Alone we are weak.  Together we are strong.

Strong, yes strong.  Strong and insane.

Be one of us and be free of the constraints

imposed on saints and old women and children.

Unleash your inner hunter and slice the world

into wet chunks of life sauted in bubbling death,

burnt to black ash in the nuclear fire of

membership.

All shall be one.

All shall be invincible.

All shall eliminate the inconvenient,

Those who ask questions,

Those who see God.

Astounding is this fertile planet,

a home for those who worship

hate and anger and violation.

I cringe behind a man of snow,

squinting at the official fire.

By authority of the state we are approved

with no boundaries to impede our crimes.

I dreamed of a garden and the laughter

of children playing, falling down with joy,

protected by a thin fence from me,

because I became lonely and joined the group.

I have learned to march, to salute, to cheer,

and to agree.

No complaints from me.

 

          Copyright 2026, John M. Medeiros