Tall Palm Just Stands There Poem by Grant House

The tall palm just stands there
Watching
Listening
Feeling the world losing its way all around
Ill winds blowing
Portending a time of great regret
Yet, in this golden evening glowing
We feel good less aware, unknowing
That tall palm presides over our shape shifting
Community coming apart by increments
On the sly
Family after family broken
Those holding their ground for goodness, kindness, hospitality, respect, and humility
Find themselves demeaned, dehumanized, demoralized
By loved ones hard pressed to coherently explain
Why they love the demagogue so
Why they fall in line with an ideology that makes mockery of faith
Fulfills the worst conjectures of human indecency and hate
The new Crusades gathering at the borders
The vulnerable their prey
The lone outstanding tall palm stands there remembering a better way
Showing us how best to be
If we could rediscover our innocent selves
In love with one another
Glad to know ya related
Common ground and heart
Recognized and nurtured
I stand here resilient, the tree seems to say
Its fronds bending in the wind
Bearing witness to the necessary transformation at hand
Were it even possible considering all the tearing down of civil society that has gained purchase
We see beauty late in the day
A friendly flag flying from a tall mast
While a great storm beyond the horizon approaches
I am thanking the disturbed tall grasses embodied in that sentinel palm
A silent alarm sounding this message
Wake up and find the middle ground
The place we shared before the shouting started
Find the common place
Where values spring up fresh with morning dew
The view that sees through all our eyes
Brothers, sisters, cousins, friends
Wake up and seek the peace of understanding, empathy, appreciation
The confidence that our differences are our strengths
Enriched by one another
Strangers, coworkers, loved ones
Visitors, neighbors
Each and every one of us are kin
The tall palm stands there
Watching
Listening
Feeling
Let's open our hearts
If only just in time
And let that message in