I can only grieve
I don’t have the money to buy
nor the politics that wins
the skin that saves
nor the might that scares
or the courage that bears
I am broken beyond repair

This is not my world I hear
Not to love I fear
or be loved all year
only fate beholds our tears

Not on the budget for care
Not on the scheme of shares
regardless of what thoughts I wear
My only power is my dare

Quite often I lose
And it’s not about the shoes
the game is over before I choose
the gold goes to a few loose screws

But I can only grieve
for even when I leave
there is no help for whom I leave
my fate they still receive
when shall love give reprieve
if by love we mean deceive
and lavish care following the stares
but living bare while at the rear.

I can only… GRIEVE

Jude Yong © 2017

*This poem is dedicated to senseless deaths of black men and women whose lives have been lost at the hands of authorites who were supposed to protect them.