20: Golden Pains

An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth

A devil for a God, a man for a woman.

The righteous always suffer, and glamor their suffering.

Embedded with turquoise and cobalt and jasper

Inlaid with obsidian and silver and gold

Lathered in syrup and honey and oil

Painted with ash and ink and dye.

***

They come to me, dressed in all this finery

And glance at my small and naked pain

And laugh as they throw me some quarters.

"Who are you," they ask

"To dare tell us about suffering?"

And then I answered so:

***

"I am the enemy of justice; I am the killer of ideals.

I am the nightmare of children and the doom of men.

I am the one who pushes down, the tyrant amongst kings.

I am the great foe, the wicked one, and the Absolute Evil.

I am the creator of pain and the master of suffering.

And you then, little victim, what do you know about it?"

***

As the words left my mouth their faces turned red

And they beat me righteously; they beat me with hate

And I laughed and was laughed at.

***

Hate is no path to justice.

Those who feel pain, feel hate.