A Nation Suspended

A nation suspended
Breath baited
We wait
As they count
Late into the night
And tensions mount
Some ready to fight
Others war weary
Eyes tired and bleary
Sleep rear-ended
By uncertainty,
Deflated by this irrefutable reality—
Perhaps the only result
That can’t be contested
As each side hurls insult
After insult:

We are a nation divided
Along invisible lines
That have become bylines
Of our identities

Red v. blue
Urban v. rural
Religious v. secular
Men v. women
White v. black and brown
Fact v. fiction

How do we know what’s true
Anymore?

How do we reach
Across the aisle
To reconcile
This profound breach
In our realities?
What is the cost
Of so much lost
Trust?
Is there a way
Into unity
Or is this a permanent rift
As we drift
Further and further
Away
From one another

A nation adrift

© Jenny Brav