Treatise On Interpersonal Relations Poem by Max Reif

In the workplace,
in the home,
amid smiles,
in silence,
the interpersonal
battle goes on:

The bulls of the out-going charge.
The feelings of the sensitive get trampled.
They withdraw and poison
the atmosphere with their resentment.

Some are skilled
with artifacts
of communication,
some have no tools
but the arrows
of their hatred.

But one day, deep inside
a wounded soul, birds
of emotion decide to fly forth,
toward the ears of companions.

Dark, sooty birds
turn white as they soar
out through the mouth,
down an ear and into a heart,
bringing reconciliation
like Noah's dove.

The air is clear,
as after a rain.
A new balance calms
and heals,
until...