by Jeremy Nathan Marks
Sunrise over the Flatiron Range near Boulder, Colorado.
A man has been charged with a federal hate crime and multiple other felonies after he allegedly used a makeshift flamethrower and incendiary devices to attack a crowd of people who were raising awareness for Israeli hostages in Gaza, injuring 12 victims. Mohamed Sabry Soliman, 45, is alleged to have shouted “Free Palestine” as he attacked the crowd on Sunday. The FBI said Soliman told police he planned the attack for a year and had specifically targeted what he described as the “Zionist group”, the Associated Press reported. —The Guardian, June 3, 2025
The Boulder mountains began as fire
perhaps that’s why they are known
as the Flatiron Range
If you look into their hearts you will find
fossils from the sea. Simple single cellular
creatures. Who by fire and Who by water.
In America, many folks like to say our story
will end in flame. I’ve seen John 3:16 signs
at Coors Field and when Mel Gibson made
his film about Jesus, some pastor hung
a billboard above I-25 saying the Jews
Killed Christ. Jews kill Jews. Who gets to
say.
A man throwing Molotov cocktails
at people who want Israeli hostages freed,
is he the authority on Jews Israel’s
ambassador and foreign minister believe
him to be.
The pressure which births mountains is
hard to imagine. What it takes to sustain
foundational myths across time, rebuild
temples, dream of olive trees is a pressure
of perhaps equal force in human terms
and very hard to fathom.
As I write this, someone would have
you believe Jews possess a divine power
to solve or cause all the worst excesses
in the world. They might also think all
Palestinians want an eye for an eye.
What is a Mashiac. Who are the prophets.
Should we ask the mountains over Boulder.
The work of the Flatirons is not malevolent.
Moses didn’t receive tablets from Sinai
but on it. Universes come and go with each
blink of the high peaks.
Brahma sits on his lotus.
Generals confer in bunkers.
The Earth’s crust floats on lava.
Hashem has many names that depict
His moods.
Not everyone says He is merely a He.
Christians speak of trinities.
Today, free speech invites a fire fight.
We assemble in our mortar formations.
I pumped gas this morning
and it’s all I can taste.
Jeremy Nathan Marks is a former Colorado resident who lives and writes in Canada.
