It begins

photo by PSC 2014 / edited 2018

It begins

in simple unease

in a dim, closed place,

tightly-latched

so no light may enter

dark thoughts

furnish tinder and flint,

kindle distrust

sparking fear, dread

hate breaks out

in beer bottle words

splintered, broken, and

 meant to draw blood

meanings deliberately misquoted,

truths twisted and trampled;

walls fabricated, sides divide,

each demonizing “the other”

escalation quickly ensues, rocks

and cudgels become bombs, guns,

citizens morph into militias,

armies and battalions, and   

unless someone’s willing

to shine a little light

we should all be afraid

of where and when and how

it ends.

PSC / 2018-Nov