Fearful Hope

This post departs from my typical format. It's only this poem, and I'll let it stand on its own.

Fearful Hope

By Elizabeth Traff

We are a fearful people.

We fear the left.

We fear the right.

We fear our leaders.

We fear our friends.

We fear for the defenseless

But who are the defenseless?

We fear for our rights

But what are our rights?

We fear for our liberties

But which liberties?

We fear for our borders

But too weak or too strong?

We fear for our lives

Because fear incites action.

We fear for our children

Because fear invites inaction.

Because our fear is so enormous

We cry out in anger

But there is no chorus.

There is no consensus.

There is only chaos.

There is only cacophony.

“You people are destroying the world!”

In that proclamation there is unity

And in the unity, disparity

And in the disparity, despair.

There is no peace in fear.

There is only unrest.

There is only darkness.

There is only grief.

We must conquer the fear.

We must understand the fear –

Our fear, their fear, all fear.

We must learn to love through the fear.

We must, or we all lose

And fear wins.