The Break

Statement: I feel the need to give some context for this piece because we are in difficult times. It is hard to know who to trust. This poem is about grief. Grief is our inheritance. It is not the only thing that we have inherited. Feel what you must feel about today. Anger, grief, angst, fear, all of these are valid and appropriate responses to the election of Donald Trump and the affirmation of hatred that his being elected signals.

There is no “but” after that. You will know what to do. The grief will tell you.


Beloved there have been days worse than this something that may be of is no comfort to you now but it is still very true Dearest, there have been days that could not have possibly had an end and yet the sun set just the same there were nights with no moon & someone held the promise of you close even if they did not know it what I mean is and it has been said before: you are the prize of the Ones that did not die you are the ready student the conditioned body you are possibility’s possibility and no ancestor before you would have been more ready what I mean is this will be hard a fact unjust but fair I’d like for you to remember that today’s terror tastes smells feels like That of yesterday’s it has only now called ahead before visiting your door know that there will be days worse than this which is an awful thing for me to say when I want so much to encourage when I need it myself but it is possible so many things are possible. yes so many things are possible	Antelope Zong Tecora La Amistad Aurore Clotilde Nightingale Creole Turner’s Falls Parchment Farm Deer Island Mount Vernon Monticello Napituca Tiguex Acoma Sandia Desire Wessagusset Pamukey Peace Talks Staten Island Massapequa Pound Ridge Susquehannock Occoneechee Henrietta Marie Chawasha Villiage Yellow Creek Battle of Bad Axe Memphis Opelousas New Orleans Vicksburg Hamburg Emanuela Coushatta Seattle Tacoma Southern apartheid Standing Rock Ferguson Wounded Knee San Quentin Selma Montgomery Rosewood Balti more Los Angeles Jim Crow

Beloved
there have been days worse
than this

something that may be of
is no comfort to you now
but it is still
very true

Dearest,
there have been days
that could not have possibly
had an end
and yet the sun
set just the same

there were nights with no moon
& someone held
the promise
of you close

even if they did not know it

what I mean is
and it has been said before:

you are the prize of the Ones
that did not die
you are the ready student
the conditioned body
you are possibility’s possibility
and no ancestor before you
would have been more ready

what I mean is
this will be hard

a fact

unjust
but fair

I’d like for you to remember
that today’s terror tastes
smells
feels like
That of yesterday’s

it has only now
called ahead
before visiting your door

know
that
there will be days
worse than this

which is an awful thing for me
to say
when I want so much to
encourage
when I need it myself

but it is
possible

so many things are possible.

yes
so many
things are possible

Antelope

Zong