We have come to this
the fertilized egg more sacred
than living school children
learning their letters and shooting drills
until rapid ripping bullets decimate
their gapped-tooth smiles
flesh and bones shredding
exit wounds gaping
DNA swabs needed to identify the dead
their last breath terrified and blood soaked
next to bulletin boards and empty chairs
a crime scene made from war
sanitized in media
We have come to this
the girl in Uvalde who survived
by rubbing her dead classmate’s blood
on her body and playing dead,
then using her dead teacher’s cellphone
to call for help —
We have come to this
the politicians’ repetitive
cruel, robotic chants:
“Thoughts and prayers.”
“mental illness”
“Arm the teachers.”
“Don’t politicize it.”
Maybe they think this is
Social Studies
it is so routine
Can you see their hands on the rifle?
We have come to this
the leading cause of death
for American children and teens
is gun violence
“Imagine,” John Lennon sang
We have come to this
