by Dan Brook
here we are
we must do
what is difficult
we must do
what is necessary
we must be
we must be
the bay
polluted & pissed in
used, abused
trying to support life
we must sustain
we must be
the rainforest
slashed & burned
choking, smoking
trying to breathe
we must regenerate
we must be
the ocean
jumped in & dumped in
crashing, thrashing
trying to wash
we must cleanse
we must be
the Earth
ridden roughshod
quaking, spinning
trying to survive
we must live
we must be
the worm
stepped over & on
wiggling, wriggling
trying to burrow
we must be humble
we must be
the other
feared & hated
mistaken, misunderstood
trying to communicate
we must be compassionate
we must be
democracy
inefficient & empowering
attacked, defended
trying to survive
we must act
we must be
ourselves
proud & vibrant
scarred, scared
trying to be
we must be better
we must be
who we are
together & alone
all of us, together
trying to thrive
we must be the best us
Dan Brook teaches in the Department of Sociology and Interdisciplinary Social Sciences at San Jose State University and is, most recently, the author of Sweet Nothings (Hekate Publishing).