Once,

I recall

a crisp morning

listening to the radio

describe Bobby Kennedy’s iron lung

By the end of the day

I was listening to music again.

Yesterday, and probably later on today lives

will be lost at the hands of war

all of which are names we don’t know.

~

Yet, in the blogs and commentaries

the incessant threads that expose our world,

in news reports and cocktail hour chats

the name ISIS will become familiar,

Kurdish, Gaza, Ukraine, Israeli, Shiite,

Crips, Bloods, Disciples, Latin Kings,

Jihad, Taliban …

White, Black, Hispanic, Russian, Somali, Asian,

Native American

~

Some names we know,

they live nearby,

walk the same streets as you and I

on any given night,

we read about their activities,

still far across the city,

distant identities across the world,

seemingly wanting the same

still not walking in stride,

yet.

~

We are a talented animal,

with our flaws and successes,

we conveniently forget

matters of hurt.

Wherever our world exists

we must always respond

to the reality around us.

In my own backyard,

I worry  about flowers and trees,

while in a nearby war zone,

families cry for each other’s lives.

We must never forget

yesterday’s lives.