by Christopher Walsh, 6/29/2016-7/8/2016
Recall what used to be wrong
Remember what was worse
The lists of both are long
When progress is seen in reverse
How were we assholes then?
What had we yet to learn?
How biased, blinded, dimmer when
Such flaws we didn't spurn?
"We thought like THAT?" is what we think
If we look, clear-eyed, back
The past's perpetually on the brink
Of showing what we lacked:
In thoughtfulness, in empathy
Compassion, help, and love
We didn't think of how to be
In too many cases of
Encountering some Other-ness
So we quick-fled to fear
We pre-judged, yes, without redress
We hated much: that's clear.
Or clearer NOW, with history
Replete with ugly sides
We look, we cringe, at past debris
And hope we don't backslide.
So what else proves to be wrong?
So how else are we blind?
The Later Us will see that 'mongst
The ways we're finally kind.
And what if we regress?
Forget some lessons learned?
We can't assume we will progress
To some perfection earned
We fail and fail and fail and fail
And, sometimes, we improve
That's still a win, if small and frail
When seen from a remove.
We've all lived in the jackass past
We're jackasses new ways, now
But, kicking-screaming, we move en masse
Towards Better.
-------------------—-Please.
------------------------------------Somehow.
© Christopher Walsh, 2016. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Christopher Walsh (chris_walsh) with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.