Elizabeth Padillo Olesen Poems

Christmas is a trip to the Wonderland
when darkness turns into nights of sparkling lights
when despair is met by the Star of Hope
when want is reached by generous hands.
...

Why do schools of our innocent kids
are made the playground of insane jackals
who ran amok in classrooms with their guns
and think that they are in the forest
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Jesus was insulted,
spat at, whipped,
mocked and crucified
And never did he ask
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Where is music when children,
men and women are slaughtered
with merciless religion of hate?
Where is poetry when blood
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The heart longs for silence-
a break from the staccato of chaos
in the murmering violence,
sobbing and screamings
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Waiting for phone calls
waiting for letters
waiting for tip toes of arrival
waiting for a knock at the door.
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What mystery this little one brings
when his birth in a bright spring
fills my heart with endless songs?
What mystery he comes with
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Gassed with poison
Struggling to keep life
but poison seeps into
their nerves and tendons
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This is a river of life
where John baptized Jesus;
This is a river in history
where companions of Muhammed
...