Poem for Obama inauguration<\/b><\/p>\n
Say it plain, that many have died for this day.
\nSing the names of the dead who brought us here,
\nwho laid the train tracks, raised the bridges,
\n——-
\nEach day we go about our business,
\nwalking past each other, catching each others\u2019
\neyes or not, about to speak or speaking.<\/p>\n
All about us is noise. All about us is
\nnoise and bramble, thorn and din, each
\none of our ancestors on our tongues.<\/p>\n
Someone is stitching up a hem, darning
\na hole in a uniform, patching a tire,
\nrepairing the things in need of repair.<\/p>\n
Someone is trying to make music somewhere
\nwith a pair of wooden spoons on an oil drum,
\nwith cello, boom box, harmonica, voice.<\/p>\n
A woman and her son wait for the bus.
\nA farmer considers the changing sky.
\nA teacher says, \u201cTake out your pencils. Begin.\u201d<\/p>\n
We encounter each other in words, words
\nspiny or smooth, whispered or declaimed,
\nwords to consider, reconsider.<\/p>\n
We cross dirt roads and highways that mark
\nthe will of someone and then others who said,
\n\u201cI need to see what\u2019s on the other side.<\/p>\n
I know there\u2019s something better down the road.\u201d
\nWe need to find a place where we are safe;
\nWe walk into that which we cannot yet see.<\/p>\n
Say it plain, that many have died for this day.
\nSing the names of the dead who brought us here,
\nwho laid the train tracks, raised the bridges,<\/p>\n
picked the cotton and the lettuce, built
\nbrick by brick the glittering edifices
\nthey would then keep clean and work inside of.<\/p>\n
Praise song for struggle, praise song for the day.
\nPraise song for every hand-lettered sign,
\nThe figuring it out at kitchen tables.<\/p>\n
Some live by \u201cLove thy neighbor as thy self.\u201d
\nOthers by \u201cfirst do no harm,\u201d or \u201ctake no more
\nthan you need.\u201d What if the mightiest word is love?<\/p>\n
Love beyond marital, filial, national,
\nlove that casts a widening pool of light,
\nlove with no need to preempt grievance.<\/p>\n
In today\u2019s sharp sparkle, this winter air,
\nany thing can be made, any sentence begun.
\nOn the brink, on the brim, on the cusp \u2014<\/p>\n
praise song for walking forward in that light.<\/p>\n
\u2014transcribed from the Presidential inauguration ceremony, January 20, 2009
\n \u00a9 2009, Elizabeth Alexander<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Poem for Obama inauguration Say it plain, that many have died for this day. Sing the names of the dead who brought us here, who laid the train tracks, raised the bridges,<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":546,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[45],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mahmag.org\/archive-english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/400"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mahmag.org\/archive-english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mahmag.org\/archive-english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mahmag.org\/archive-english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/546"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mahmag.org\/archive-english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=400"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mahmag.org\/archive-english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/400\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mahmag.org\/archive-english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=400"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mahmag.org\/archive-english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=400"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mahmag.org\/archive-english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=400"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}