Every fear, every foe, every deed
Every want, every woe, every need
Every mistake, every loss of face
Every missed opportunity, loss of place
Every time he was less than a man
Every time he didn’t do all a man can
Every drink, every tear, every fight
Every angry act, every day, every night
Those about to and all those who have died:
Too much history to hide
This is what I see in my father’s eyes
Staring stunned, far off, plate wide
Like a PTSD affected soldier returned
From the 70 year war of his own life
His once strong hands now trembling
His voice cracked, his gait shambling
He has been hollowed out from the inside
By this all consuming rising tide
A total loss of self in which to abide:
Too much history to hide
Can the same be said for the political divide
In this country bent on social suicide?
Every betrayal of trust, every broken promise
Every hole in the ground, every burden upon us
Every slight of hand, every obfuscation
Every burial of truth, every call to nation
Every media circus, every corporate junket
Every intervention and ignored convention
Every detainee who for freedom tried:
Too much history to hide
The same will happen to me in time
I will stare with my father’s eyes
At every failure, every lessening, every lie
Every moment of weakness, every sleepless night
Every wrong word, every incomplete sentence
Every selfish thought, every time I’m petulant
Every loss of hope, every outburst in fury
Every hangover, every slip, every fall
Every violent impulse inside me and all
The violent impulses used against me
All of these will one day coincide:
Too much history to hide
© shaun patrick green 2014
