We

have been the buyer, the bought
the boy’s blood in the dirt

have been the woman in winter
the knife of her hunger

have been the knife at her throat

have ravaged and burned, been burned

have been the rope that hangs
the hands that bind the hands, that set the flame

have been a land cleared by the flame
a land lit by the moon
a sky cleared by lit homes

have been a man reduced
to a body, a body to bones

have emboldened, been made bold

have been uplifted, held
under, mourned, been mourned

have been a tale told
and untold

have been a language lost
owning nothing of ourselves

have been a love that dims
the line drawn between us to remind

have deceived, been taken in

have been destroyed
have been beginning

have been discovery, a new fruit
growing ripe within our skins