November 10th

Where were you when the wall came down? 
When the woodpeckers broke the dam of un-freedom,
Or the Eastern hares hopped lost through Western cement,
Or the scholars watched with bewilderment as their frameworks fell like a house of cards,
When W for West had become V for Victory and the end of history was nigh.

Where were you when the wall came down?
When remembrance of other November 9ths had grown dim,
For a dark seed was planted near a beer hall in Munich,
​And later eyes looked askance as windows were smashed,
And children were taught to humiliate as freedom starved in closets and attics.

Where were you when the wall came down?
When, two days later, the veterans emerged in tears that never dried,
Poppies worn over hearts,
Commemorating young blood spilled for reasons few remember
And a grudging, indignant peace that wove its way through a century.

​Where are you on November 10th?

Thoughts on the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.