Heroes

Heroes

Despite the delusion of forefathers
who defined our community
as a city on a hill;
despite our ambitious arrogance
to embrace a policy
of Manifest Destiny;
despite dismissive denial
of clear policies
of empire and genocide;
despite a national mythology
unsupported by facts;
despite our unfortunate history,
there are in this land
a large number of decent humans
who work with focus and dedication
to improve the lives of strangers
and bring health to
the fauna and flora
of our dying planet;
and they do so without fanfare
without fortune or fame
in a culture fueled by both;
and in this way
they give me pleasant distractions
from the many things
I don't want to think about.

// written in the waiting room ...