The Men in Green

When I was young,
I wasn’t scared of spiders or clown masks.
I wasn’t scared of horror movies or ghost stories.
I wasn’t scared of big dogs or dark rooms.
I was scared of The Men in Green.

A few time a year, The Men in Green would come out
to hunt.

I didn’t know why,
but The Men in Green only seemed to take those born
in different countries.

My friends and I knew that if you weren’t born knowing the
Star-Spangled Banner,
The Men in Green,
would take you away.

My friend Cassandra,
once told me
that she had seen The Men in Green.
She said The Men in Green wore black boots,
drove around in a white cage
and wore the word “ICE” on their backs
so everyone would learn to fear the cold.

They used to say The Men in Green only take your parents away
like my friend Abby
who was only nine
when The Men in Green
took her Momma away
while she was at work
and Abby was at school.

The Men in Green,
left Abby motherless and crying
under the big red slide
during recess.

They used to say The Men in Green only take your parents away.
But in fifth grade,
The Men in Green,
took Alex, Julian and Karla.

Alex who wanted to be a doctor,
Julian who wanted to be a soccer player, and
Karla who wanted to be a teacher,
disappeared
under the heal of a
cold
shiny
black
boot.
 

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