544. O’ Lucifer

You pushed and pushed again…

Over and over and over…*Amen*

You pray, “O’ Lucifer, Smite the Damned!”,

Becoming that with which you command.

You laughed and laughed again…

Over and over and over…*Amen*

This is the hell you’ve fashioned on Earth,

For those such as I, cursed from our birth.

You spit and spit again…

Over and over and over…*Amen*

Those who are living in hell will refuse,

To play along, for they’ll only lose.

You tricked and tricked again…

Over and over and over…*Amen*

It’s not safe as a human in hell…

Surrounded…Shh, there’s nothing to tell.

You struck and struck again…

Over and over and over…*Amen*

There is no trust,…No guardians,…No safety.

Hell is here,

And the demons,…of humanity.

K. Aldaya, 5/30/21

Picture: By Jon Tyson on Unsplash; https://unsplash.com/photos/epZp5y3wqcA

535. White Privilege

“Do you plead guilty for being skin-white?”,

The judge asked, pointing his gavel at me.

“We must rid the world of the hateful sight,

Of privilege and self-superiority”.

I pled, “I’m not guilty, your honor!”,

To the resounding of gasps, oohs, and ahhs.

“I’m not guilty any less…any more,

Nor have I broken any just moral laws.

I reject your claim that I’m a color.

I am human. Nothing more. Nothing less.

Of the same shade as our first ancestors.

Color only matters when used to oppress.

We are of the same fam’ly and species,

Though our troubled history is quite clear.

Evil has been done to everybody,

For we’re all susceptible to manipulation and fear.

Color and anything that’s “different”,

Is used to attain power and control.

Forging divides where they once were absent.

Oppressing far too many a human soul.

So I can not be guilty, your honor,

For I refuse to accept division.

My privilege is merely in living, sir.

I do not acknowledge this court’s position!”

“Sentence her!”…”Guilty!”, the court erupted;

As, “Order! Order!”, the judge shouted out.

“I see this trial has long been corrupted.”

“Not guilty”, the judge firmly declared. “Out! Out!”

And as I strode outside into the sun,

Someone in the crowd yelled, “Racist!”, and *BANG*

Another human oppressed by oppression.

And in the end: What is won? What is won?

As the lynched and I sang, yes, sang to the grave,

The power-mad laud that finally…

“Justice has been done!”

K. Aldaya, 4/28/21

Picture 1: By Volkan Olmez on Unsplash; https://unsplash.com/photos/wESKMSgZJDo

Picture 2: By Kamil Feczko on Unsplash; https://unsplash.com/photos/fd3BpI6NcMU

531. The Game of Trust

Give me a man who’s pure evil,

Over a good one anyday.

At least the cruel man is honest,

And you’ll know his intentions right away,

But a good man who does evil things,

How does one anticipate or react?

When you’re unsure if someone will do harm,

What is the best course or tact?

Give me a man who’s pure good,

Over an evil one anyday,

Because the good man is honest,

And you’ll know his intentions straight away;

But an evil man who does good things,

How is one supposed to feel about that?

The head spins unsure of what to think,

Or how best to view them or react.

Give me anything but a human,

Who rides on a tipping scale,

Of kind of good and kind of bad,

How can any of us prevail?…

In a world where everyone is in question,

And anything can be put on display.

Honesty is preferable to high moral ground,

And trust is just a game we play.

K. Aldaya, 1/19/21

Picture: Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow in Avengers; https://vocal.media/geeks/5-avengers-sure-to-die-by-the-time-marvel-s-phase-4-rolls-around

526. Coliseum

I long to write, though who will listen,

To the rantings of the insane?

The title merely grants invisibility;

And a face without a name,

In the coliseum of civility.

I wander through the crowds,

In the stands, where spectators watch,

As warriors and politicians,

Earn another scar or notch,

In the holding of their positions.

I stretch my hands out for scraps,

As they shoo me out of sight;

Though from here I see it all,

And know that none of this is right…

And soon all of us will fall.

Be it by starvation, wound, or pride.

We are all part of the show.

I may seem but a distraction,

Yet I’ve gone where others can not go;

And seen every angle of inaction.

For they play their parts quite well,

And the world moves to their plans.

I’ve seen every move and collapse,

As money changes hands,

And they fall in the same traps.

From the outside, I look in,

Year after year…Sin after sin.

I hold my voice, and hold my breath.

No one’s listening, so who can win?

We stand aside until death.

I look at you. Do you see me?

Are you looking? What do you see?

God’s play games, as day absconds.

Are you a God, or are you me?

Do you play games with human pawns?

For who can win an endless game?

And who can fight our mortal fate?

Though, in my eyes you’d find the sun,

So listen well, it’s getting late.

This entertainment is not fun!

And this game you can not win!

The only money, worth it, to spend,

Is found in the outstretched hand.

For the show continues long after curtain descends…

And only in the heart of another could you understand,…

All we have is each other in the end.

K. Aldaya, 10/7/20

Picture: By: Jorge Fernandez Salas on Unsplash; https://unsplash.com/photos/hvxJ2cnecd4

519. Midnight

photo-1532798369041-b33eb576ef16

What I used to fear, I now crave.

There is no escape, but for the grave.

The bitterness,…the human plight.

I’m as tired as sleepless night.

I cannot leave,…the night’s not o’er.

I am the moon, and the Earth, the floor.

I hover on high, watch and wait,

‘Til the day time seals my fate.

I will return to dust and light;

Yet until then, I must do what’s right.

I’ve loved too much to spurn my fate.

Sing a lullaby,… it’s getting late.

Go to sleep. There’s not to fear.

And when you wake, please shed no tear.

Within the light, I am still here.

K. Aldaya, 6/17/20

Picture: By Nick Owuor on Unsplash; https://unsplash.com/photos/wDifg5xc9Z4