The Difference Between Us And Them - Poem by Lori Boulard

There is a word in Farsi that means
you, me, him, her, us, them, nature,
and God. One word to voice the pure,
common life-force winding through us all.

If only we'd known sooner. This mess
of understanding could have been avoided.

For in English, we have no
such word. In America
at least, nature is not pure. It is
a formula, ripe for tampering.
In America, nature is relative.

And God? He is not free,
though on sale this week at Wal-Mart.
In America, God is a man.
He is a capitalist.
And he is Pay Per View.