Building a Bridge (July 2007) in meh...

Dedicated to one of my brothers

Standing in this place,
as I have stood so many
times before extending this
olive branch from skeptical
fingers, “will he meet me half way?” “will he throw it to the ground
and stomp it into botanical
shards?”
wouldn’t really matter unless he
takes me up on my offer to be
the brother and sister of civility.
That’s all I want.
Stop this war because it’s
killing me and I didn’t realize
it until I listened to a question
that brought tears to my eyes. “how do you measure a year
in the life”…Life is no concern for
the dying…“No day but today” is
wonderful for seizing life and
good times.
Not for being wrapped in mistreatments.
Every now and again, funny times
are bittersweet on my
senses because it’s as if they
don’t exist and that stings
like peroxide on my sensitive
bruised skin.
I want to know my nephew.
I want him to know he’s
surrounded by a wall of love
and no matter where he turns
he’ll get the help he needs.
But it all starts here and now
as I stand with my olive
branch looking for new life to
creep it’s way into what we
neglect and let die off.
I want to say I love my brother
and speak of you when I say it.
But should you turn me down,
then I’d be right again, and you’ll
still be arrogant and unreasonable and
full of hatred towards me.
Take me or leave me.

And, to this day, we still are not…