Tell Me - One in the Same

Tell me,
Are we not equal,
One in the same?

If you cut my chest open,
Do I not bleed the same?

Do I not have a heart,
That beats just like yours?

Do I not have lungs,
That breathe the same air?

Do I not have muscles and tendons,
That give me form,
That provide me strength,
And protect my bones?

Do I not have bones,
That give me structure,
That provide me support?

Do I not have blood,
That gives me life?
That runs through my veins,
Just as yours runs through your veins?
That drains from my body when you cut into me?
That fills me,
Completes me,
And is as red as yours?

Yes, it's true,
I may not share blood.
Family and culture.
Tradition and race.
Country and home,
But deep down inside,
We're one in the same.
You know it as well.

You may argue against me,
Perceive me a beast,
A heathen,
A monster,
And nothing like you.

But answer me this,
Although we are different,
As night is from day,
Are we not human?
Beings of thought?

Under it all,
Our perceptions and thoughts,
Beliefs and traditions,
Customs and heritage;
Blood and all,
We are one in the same;
Humans: creatures of thought.

We can perceive and colour the world in shades of black and white,
We can separate and segregate,
Classify and stereotype,
But at the end of it all,
At the end of the day,
At the end of our lives,
We will have to accept,
At some point in time,
That we are one in the same.

You can choose to ignore it as much as you want,
But remember this well:
Ignorance, for what it is worth,
Is not worth the hate and lives you destroy.

It's best you acknowledge this one simple thought,
It's best to understand the strength of your words,
The power they hold over those you attack:
The power to destroy,
Or save a life.