The Fall of Communism
Just before your sophomore year you spent
Nearly ninety dollars on Che Guevara T-shirts
All in complementing earthy tones
That armed you with a different daily
Defiance to any teacher or other minor
Autocrat who would dare disparagement
Who you would swiftly crush with
Your watertight - almost - treatise
On the the evils of capitalism
But no such challenge ever came
Your understanding parents though
Would sometimes ask politely that you
Turn down Evil Empire
But then -
What other outlet was presented for
Overwhelming geysers of compassion
Which first spouted on the day you noticed
Some disheveled woman on the sidewalk
Washing her body in stagnant water
Vocalizing scrambled thoughts trying to
Cool her chapped and leather shoulders
From the summer heat you couldn’t wait to come?
You were suddenly uncomfortable and frightened
Unworthy of the shoes you got for Christmas
And even though you crossed the street
You told yourself, you knew deep down
There must be something better than -
A better way than this
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