Apricot Blossoms - Trout Black

[Larry Robinson]

Apricot Blossoms


A passel of smoothers

slide onto the rink

and clean the ice

as the last 5 skaters

prepare to complete

their already ruined pursuit

of bronze, silver, and gold

A hundred thousand Russian troops

mass at Ukraine's border,

tanks, missiles, bombers, ships,

ready,

threatening

Deep in the midst of China

"brainwashed' Uyghurs

are walled-in for cleaning

Our world hurts,

is angry, afraid, outraged

Outside my window

an apricot tree

blossoms

in unbridled enthusiasm

Which direction should I look ?

I remember our genocide

of indigenous people,

our shipping of enslaved children,

women, and men from Africa,

our extermination of seven-eights

of our country's friendly old trees

15-year-old Kamila,

sobbing after her disaster,

is embraced by her coach,

from whom she shrinks

Putin smiles

An Uyghur carries

the Chinese banner

and helps light the

Olympic flame

Where should we look ?

Outside my window

bees carry apricot pollen

from blossom

to blossom.

Yes,

where should we look ?

	- Trout Black