GRADUAL HATRED

By Roger Wallock
copyright 2007

Two carefree kids
explore a tiny sandbox
for Adventure,
oblivious to the world
around them.
Tender-hearted, One
brushes a smudge off
the cheek of the Other.
Hugging hastily
at the end of a
Great Day,
parents pull them
reluctantly towards
Home.

Two grade school children
explore a grand classroom
for Knowledge,
observant of the world
around them.
Tender-hearted, One
notices the brown
cheek of the Other.
High-fiving hastily
at the end of a
Great Day,
parents pick them up,
pulling them
reluctantly towards
Home.

Two treacherous teenagers
explore pitiless prejudice
for Pleasure,
ignorant of the world’s
uniqueness.
Cold-hearted, One
bashes the bloody brown
cheek of the Other.
High-fiving new,
same-faced friends
at the end of a
Dark Day,
cops cuff him and
escort him
reluctantly towards his
Future.