For one brief moment
let us stop biting
the double-barbed hook
of division;
let us stop posturing
blue against red,
brown against white,
north against south,
woman against man.
For one brief moment,
let us suspend
our opinions,
take off the masks
of our race,
faith,
politics,
philosophy,
culture,
color,
age,
and gender.
For just this moment
let us set aside
our grievances,
set down our pride,
our flags,
and our weapons.
Let us unclench our fists
and unfurl our brows,
let us govern the light
of our own spirit
and shine it
here.
Let us retract
the pointed finger
of blame
and cease to entertain
notions of “us and them.”
Temporarily,
let us place on pause
our ambitious pursuit
of position and influence.
And for one
fleeting instant in time
— right now —
let us simply stand
together
and hear the pulse
of our shared humanity,
the sound
of eight billion
non-partisan hearts
beating in unison.
. . .
Together, as One!
