everybody knows Human

Human and Suffering and Poetry are nothing new

What is Human? from anywhere-

it is something like spring

alone in the dark on a rock but we sing

Now the sun is loud through the window

where we walk-there are scars

What is after Human?

we are trailed by sawdust or the stuff of the stars

But we are made of dirt and blood

I will become you as I rot in the earth

We sing, we breathe, we dance Human

the sky blinks as if upon children

What am I but a child?

I am 2, I am 10, I am 13, I am 15: Death and I look at each other

and each time I am more of a child and more afraid

Human is afraid; I am afraid

fear was promised to me and I have it by the mouthful of sawdust

fear is Human

Human is made of humans

I am everyone I’ve ever known

I am nothing new to the world

but I am new to myself