Nobility of Blood

Nobility of Blood

Dear Lord, this congressional recess

the President's Cabinet promises

to thank you for AIDS, though

it has not made them transcend

into the 21st century. They are

still caught up in superficial things

like fake news, taxes, bans, the wall.

We thank you for these tent evangelists,

brothers and sisters alike,

breeders of hate crimes,

that reject the perfect beauty

of homemade remedies

and blood transfusions.

Lord, forgive their arrogance

toward the medical community

and appoint faith healers

to Obama Care, or whatever

Mr. Trump decides to call it.

Thank you for allowing me to live

on the periphery of society,

where nobody asks yet everybody

tells.  Thank you for the innocent

illusion of my open exhibitions

of affection toward Omar. Thank you

for not letting in immigrants

from Muslim Africa, where water, food,

and medical supplies have always

been scarce and costly, where rape

and violence towards women

is beyond control, where children

have no choice but to fight

for brutal warlords, where life

and death no longer belong to You.

Yemen, Iraq, Somalia, Iran, Libya, Sudan,

have you learned to die?