Tags
abuse, collusion, communication, conscience, falsehood, healing, injustice, poem, poetry, silence, taboo, taboo subject, therapy
“It is true that when we harm others, we harm ourselves; but it is just as true that when we help others, we also help ourselves.”
― Desmond Tutu, The Book of Forgiving: The Fourfold Path for Healing Ourselves and Our World
Taboo or not taboo, that is the question
Whether it is nobler in the mind*
To sit and do nothing
Or to stand up for what you know to be right
To listen and not be moved to action
To watch and to turn a blind eye
Does conscience or the lack of it make fools of us all?
In colluding with a wrongful action by keeping silent
In denying truth dishonestly and claiming falsehood true
What destructive forces do we unleash?
And can we ever rein them back before it is too late?
When we look but do not see
When we turn away in disgust relentless to the end
Because we cannot, dare not comprehend
What misery are we storing up for our brothers and our sisters
And ultimately ourselves?
~mew
[*Inspired by Shakespeare’s “Hamlet”]
