I studied Buddhism
At a temple downtown
I was still young, naive
And trying to explore the world
And thought maybe here, in the temple
There would be only enlightenment
My assigned teacher was born and raised
In Japan
He flat out told me that if things
Had gone differently in the war
That many American generals
Would have been hung for war crimes
I realized this was his passive aggressive way
Of letting me know that I was not welcome
I left the temple never to return

As I made my way across downtown
A ragged young girl stopped me
She asked me if I had any change
To give her. I told her I had none
She screamed at me with such hostility
“Punch me in the face!” She bellowed
“For five bucks you can punch me in the face!”
Looking back it was brilliantly done
It had all the ferocity of an attack
But her words were carefully chosen
To redirect the idea of violence on herself
Making her the victim
It was meant to invoke an emotional
Response from me
Maybe I was meant to beg her for forgiveness
And hand her all the cash I had

In the end, they found the *******
in me
I had no emotional response to either
Of these attacks
They meant nothing to me
I was already numb