"WE"

 My grandmother read me a book when I was a little kid that had the word "WE"

stamped into its cover in broken 1920s gold leaf

As my eyes grew heavy, in the bedroom my father slept in as a child, I wondered...

What is "WE"? Who are "WE"?

There are questions that can rattle around in your head for a lifetime...
but once in a while the centuries grind to a halt
and WE are given the precious time
to ask again in our child-like inner voice
What is "WE"?

Hiding in the shadow of Carl Jung
is the WE that holds each other back
and tears each other down
the WE that whispers secrets
and complains about paradise
even heaven is too cold...

But also it is the "ONE" of Marley, the Buddha and Abraham
it's the lightning strike
of our magic mutual creation
it's the root
WE share
made of the same dust as the stars
WE pray to

It's the dream of Martin Luther King, Jr.
and the iron of the nail on the church door of his namesake
it's the innocence and the mistake
the universal flaw and the perfect imperfection

The hipsters called it jazz

The hippies called it love

And WE call it WE