it started
just below her ear
and coursed down
her neck
covering parts of her breast
winding like a politician’s words
to her back
vining down her leg
it was there
for all to see
it protected her
from her own teachings
of love thy neighbor
she was willing to die
for those who shared
the same tattoo
but those
whose markings
were different
were to be
guarded against
kept away
shunned
and shown
no mercy
in battle
that they had children
and husbands
lying dead
in the rubble of life
was not her concern
for they did not have
the tattoo of god
as
she saw
god
fragrant whiffs of music
from his yard sale saxophone
caught a breeze
and sailed across the field
to call me one last time
before he heads back
for final conversations
with family and friends
afraid of being alone
when his voice
is the only one
to be heard
now he says
he’s got no children
something the first wife said to them
made them feel unwelcomed
even when the welcome mat was out
so now he’s tired of trying
to have conversations
when no one’s listening
better to just pack up
and head home
before
more
snow
comes
now
i ain’t
no religious scholar
so
what i say
may be all wrong
but
i was just flipping
through all those holy books
and
i couldn’t find
one damn thing
that said it was okay
to remove your neighbor’s landmarks
just to build more houses
for your family
or
to rape another man’s wife
war
or
no war
nor
could i find one word
that said
the killing of children
is justified
because you want to teach
their parents
a lesson
but
you being
so close to god and all
could
you
tell me
what
you
saw
it started
Read Between the Minds 