Joint Custody
Dec 17 2006


Two people who were once in love
with each other
can be rubbed raw,
growing calluses as hard as armour.
And they possess the intimate knowledge
of soft underbellies
and cutting words
that are sure to draw blood.
So she can no longer bear to be touched,
and he is inured to her suffering.

In a cold war
you dehumanize the enemy,
watching through binoculars across a blasted no-man’s land.
And like Dr. Strangelove
there are madmen who make plans for doomsday.

But civil wars are deadly
all scorched earth and poisoned memory,
fighting brother-to-brother and hand-to-hand;
the same bonds of blood
that make you go blind with anger.
And there can be no innocent bystanders,
just collaborators and collateral damage.
Because in a civil war
everyone is forced to take sides;
even the children
who also face-off across battle-lines.

Or like prisoners and spies, get traded
in a frosty formal exchange
— on weekdays, to the place that was home,
and weekends to a lonely high-rise.