I cried today
In the middle of the town square
With the glare of the sun’s rays
Licking up my spine,
A sea of people pressing in around me,
Music blaring from the stairs of the gazebo
Mixing with laughter that swept
Across the sidewalks.
Viewing, remembering.
Yet I stood still and wept
Unmoved by the ebb and flow
Of people weaving between paper cranes
Pinned to boards with pictures and dates,
Lanes of faces, of lost wishes,
And blown kisses with promises to return.
Their eyes, black and white and stern,
Turns sweat into shivers
At the base of my skull,
A dull burn, but my eyes do not flicker
Away from the inky alter.
Eight smiling faces pressed to black
Surrounded by candles atop a rainbow mat.
Life stilled, stopped, and kept intact.
Frozen.
Faltering only in the chosen words
Inked bold besides their names.
He took his own life,
Framed by a date and age.
And I stand reading, memorizing,
Trying to understand.
The youngest is thirteen, A,
Is dead with a bullet to his head.
And I am angry
Because no one stood up and said
A, B, T, S, R, RB, JD, J
Place your hand in mine
And together we will walk until this land
Preaches that the only sacred thing in life is life
And love
And loving life with a love
Not limited to the status-quo.
They were only kids
Who lost hope.
Who did not have options and will never grow old.
So I stood
In that town square
With fall in the air,
People brushing by my side
And I cried
For the boys that died
Feeling terrified in their own skin
S wanted to be a doctor,
T played the violin,
But they were silenced by hatred.
Please help me understand
why these lives were ended
before they even began.
(The names of the boys kept secret)
