"Sorrow Song"; “The First Lines of Emails I’ve Received While Quarantining”; "Question and Answer"

For this week’s Peace of History:
We conclude National Poetry month by sharing two poems that each meditate on the sense of absurdity, loss of meaning, and disorientation during times of crisis. The first immediately brings to mind the unspeakably inhumane horrors that people of color, and especially children, have suffered in recent centuries due to colonialism and war. In a simple litany of places and ethnicities, some of the worst scenes of human brutality are evoked like a highlight reel. And yet, the poem is not about the brutality itself (the atrocities are only mentioned, not described), but about the banal sources of that brutality, and the children who witness them.
The second poem is the inverse to the first: it is a contemporary poem that has recently gone viral on Twitter. Composed of email snippets, the poem shows the strange dissonance of heartfelt well-wishes and attempts to connect alongside naked capitalistic opportunism -- especially during a deadly global pandemic. In the age of COVID-19, everything is heightened. Each stanza clings to a sense of normalcy, but the things that mattered before the quarantines seem strange now, and new normals are being formed before our eyes.

Finally, we also share a third poem to remind us of the reasons to struggle for justice. Despite how long we have struggled, how hard we have already fought for a better world, how many we have lost in our striving -- faith in the possibility of a better world sustains many of us. This has always been true, but in this most historic of moments, the inherent injustices of our society have been exposed by the pandemic, and we can all feel what seems like the foundations of the whole earth shift and heave below our feet. The old systems are in crisis, and never have the possibilities for the reshaping of the world seemed more real.

“Sorrow Song”
for the eyes of the children,
the last to melt,
the last to vaporize,
for the lingering eyes of the children, staring,
the eyes of the children of
buchenwald,
of viet nam and johannesburg,
for the eyes of the children
of nagasaki,
for the eyes of the children
of the middle passage,
for the cherokee eyes, ethiopian eyes,
russian eyes, american eyes,
for all that remains of the children,
their eyes,
staring at us, amazed to see
the extraordinary evil in
ordinary men.

Lucille Clifton (1936-2010)

--

“The First Lines of Emails I’ve Received While Quarantining”
In these uncertain times
as we navigate the new normal,
are you willing to share your ideas and solutions?
As you know, many people are struggling.
I know you are up against it:
the digital landscape.
We share your concerns.
As you know, many people are struggling.
We hope this note finds you and your family safe.
We’ve never seen anything like this before.
Here are 25 Distance Learning Tips!
As you know, many people are struggling.
Feeling Fiesta today? Happy Taco Tuesday!
Calories don’t count during a pandemic.
Grocers report flour shortages as more people are baking than ever!
As you know, many people are struggling.
Count your blessings. Share your blessings.
Get Free Curb-side pick up or ship to your house!
Chicken! Lemon! Artichokes!
As you know, many people are struggling.
How are you inspiring greatness today?
We have a cure for your cabin fever.
Pandemic dial-in town hall TONIGHT!
As you know, many people are struggling.
Mother’s Day looks a little different this year.
You’re invited to shop all jeans for 50% off!
Yes, buy 1, get 1 free!
As you know, many people are struggling.
Call us to discuss a loan extension without penalty.
ACT NOW: Tell Congress Charters should Not Line their Pockets During the COVID crisis.
Now shipping facemasks as recommended by the CDC.
As you know, many people are struggling.
This is not normal.

Jessica Salfia (2020)
https://twitter.com/jessica_salfia/status/1249000027198033922

--

“Question and Answer”
Durban, Birmingham,
Cape Town, Alabama,
Johannesburg, Watts,
The earth around
Struggling, fighting,
Dying--for what?
A world to gain.
Groping, hoping,
Waiting--for what?
A world to gain.
Dreams kicked asunder,
Why not go under?
There's a world to gain.
But suppose I don't want it,
Why take it?
To remake it.

Langston Hughes (1902-1967)