AS HUMAN

By Roland E. Williams

I know now that I once knew him

They told me all about what he’d done

And all that had been done to him

I got it all once it had sunk in

He could not stay away from bad

Now they say no good can come of him

His family had tried and failed

He now walks the streets like the undead

In ragged clothes and five lost teeth

Now all wait for the shame to be blotted

… by time. Our partner in crime

But no more are they holding their breath

For their shame has reached its limit

And their patience has long lost its name

At night he would scavenge garbage

He halted when he saw me looking

The same glance he had that one time

A soft voice pleading for me to leave

I asked him later what I’d done

I can’t do that when you are looking

…is humanity always a shame to us?

#Reputation #Humanbeings #Discrimination #Experience #Life #Judgement #Circumstances