A different skin tone
A different tongue
What does it matter?
We’re all born young –
Innocent and naïve
Until the world infects
Our minds and makes us harm
The world we should protect

A different belief
A different home
But what is the difference
Between “Hi” and “Shalom”?
Or “As-Salamu Alaykum”
And “Peace be with you”
In the end we’re all humans
Christian or Muslim or Jew

And it’s all rather silly
If you care to think it through
How we need to differentiate
And separate me and you
Just because we were born
In a slightly different place
Into a different religion
Into a different race

‘Cause we’re humans and we bleed
The same colour of red
We need the same things
To be loved and fed
Even if I lived a world away
It matters not in the end
We’re all in this together
You and me, my friend

The Israelis taught me and they taught me well
How to **** you and I to hell
Endless days spent waiting in fear
Until I felt no more
First defence, well that was me
Waiting for the bomber
"STOP or I'll say stop again"
To die would be my "honour"
I couldn't let them take the Jews
It happened once before
So I hunted and I waited
To settle that old score
And still I hunt and still I wait
For those condemned to hell
Defending not just Israel
All innocents as well
So if you've hurt the meek and mild
Or raised your hand to a tiny child
Your time is up, the sand's all run
Finish yourself or face the gun

She tells you there is a hurricane inside my head
And how my pupil is not the eye of the storm

Agitation creeps underneath the layers of my skin
She is sure that I am trouble (or troubled)

Obviously, I am a thief in the night
I am stealing you away, after all

And she explains to your sister that I am the wolf in sheepskin
Just waiting to devour

I tell her I don’t understand what it is I did wrong
She tells me to exam myself once more and recalculate all my flaws

I wake to his whistling
On the couch in the den
His mug full of black coffee
Now empty, he'll get up to fill it again

My grandfather is constant
He has never walked out on me
He has taught me that nonsense
Lies within the person who flees

I have watched him slow with age
His bones have grown weak and frail
I know that he sheds tears offstage
When he looks back on the trials of his tale

My grandfather is water
He flows and ebbs, traveling from place to place
But he has had three otters
To keep him company... just in case

He is a constant imperfect man
Who loves motorcycles and sweets
He's too laid-back to have a plan
But shows up early when we meet

I lie awake and I know he does the same
Staring at the ceiling is one thing we share in common
Sleep has always been like a waiting game
He wishes he could close his eyes more often

My grandfather is constant water
He is changeless and tranquil
I am certain that his love has made me stronger
Even when it appears to be casual

My porcelain skin is no match
For the velvety brown of yours
Your soft chocolate eyes are lovelier
While my greens are merely cold

And I should know better than to refuse
To wipe my face on the floor
I should be more of a lady (or a nun)
If I'm to be all you're asking for

You reference the way I was raised
A single mother and an only daughter
And you're sure that I will lead astray
Your potential grandsons and granddaughters

Know that your son is all
The good you exclaim him to be
But he sees the light in these witch's eyes
Where you see death and greed

I now understand that I will never
Be righteous enough in your sight
And it is because of your background
That you accuse and criticize

You will always be his mother
Who cares for him nonetheless
But I will stay his lover
Even while I don't pass your test

Choose your words carefully, now
Stick a coffee filter
Between your mind and mouth
Please try to control what comes out

Hold your tongue
Staple that muscle
To the pinks of your gums
Please just do it for my mom

End the R-word
Print it in a million books
And watch the pages burn
Put a stop to the harmful looks

Terminate "*******"
It isn't a synonym for "absurd"
It's not just a filler-word
My cousin is not to be discarded

If I could eliminate
The word I hate
I would cut the letters up
And hide them away from the ones that I love

Dispose of this nasty term
Cut this expression down
Watch this word infest with worms
And let the death be the talk of the town