You say to embrace
Those who lace
Words with hate
Slam the gate
Shut
In my face
Can I do it?
The ones who say
That a transwoman
Is a man in a dress
Wanting to transgress
The sacred space
That is mine
I say what?
Is a priest to transgress
The blessed mess
Of a holy state
After centuries of
Building churches
On ancient tree circles?
Perhaps it’s too late
To meld words
Towards shores
Of compassion
In a fashion of love
But perhaps we should try
Or else cry tears of
Should haves
When he presses the button
And we go up
Mushroomed in a cloud
Shrouded in blame
And if only
I had said
Stop
You say to embrace
Those who displace
Their awkward hurts
With blurts of pepper-sprayed
Gun-toting words
Against anyone
From anywhere
That isn’t here
How can I embrace
Those whose ideas
Are so polarised
That they incise
My eyes with grit
From a boot
Squashing my highly prized
Politicised romanticised
Ideas of what it means
To be human?
To embrace
Those who want
A concrete vault
And a wall
Between tribes
Can I do it?
I can’t even embrace
My own face
In the mirror
Perhaps that is just where
I should start.
© xmab 5.ii.18