Riddle - Jericho Brown

[Larry Robinson]

 Riddle


 
We do not recognize the body

Of Emmett Till. We do not know

The boy’s name nor the sound

Of his mother wailing. We have

Never heard a mother wailing. 

We do not know the history

Of ourselves in this nation. We

Do not know the history of our

Selves on this planet because

We do not have to know

What we believe we own. We believe

We own your bodies but have no

Use for your tears. We destroy 

The body that refuses use. We use 

Maps we did not draw. We see 

A sea so cross it. We see a moon 

So land there. We love land so 

Long as we can take it. Shhh. We 

Can’t take that sound. What is 

A mother wailing? We do not

Recognize music until we can 

Sell it. We sell what cannot be

Bought. We buy silence. Let us

Help you. How much does it cost

To hold your breath underwater? 

Wait. Wait. What are we? What?

What? What on Earth are we?


		- Jericho Brown