IN MY REFLECTION

In my reflection I see scars

from battles lost and won. I see

images of unresolved pain, of frustration

and fatigue.

In my reflection I see the contemplation

of things which irk my soul and

stab at my heart; things which mock

me and taunt me.

In my reflection I see the history of color

and race. I see murder and other injustices

wrought down on a mighty mass of people seeking

to define separation by pigmentation. I see cloaks

of evil lurking in doorways and alleys;

laughing drunken cloaks, bludgeon wielding cloaks

and homicidal cloaks; all dancing within the realm of destruction and chaos. 

I see death.

In my reflection I see education; an education

forged by man, induced by the streets

and passed on through heredity. I see infinite paths;

courses designed for elevation and the reception

of knowledge. I see and understand the presence of

choice, of decision. I see hope.

In my reflection I see color as it is. Color.

I see color contrasts as they are. In my

reflection I see the combination of life and love; the

powerful combination of inner strength

and endurance. I see them coming together

to erect a barrier of truth and justice around

ignorance and malice. I see hope.

In my reflection I see many things, but

It is my decision, my right, to choose the path

of which I belong. It is my right to seek happiness

and comfort in indifferent arms. It is my right to

seek pain as a refuge from melancholy. It is my

right to seek and believe in hope.

And I shall.

(c) Angelo Bell 2012