The Lie in poLItE - August 15, 2024

how much of the time do we act

kind when we could care less

I guess our parents learned

to curb honest reactions

from their parents and they

the hundreds of parents before them

maybe it started way back  a smiling Earl

who married the King’s ugliest daughter

for power  land and prestige

or even farther back  an elder

schmoozing the village with gifts and

promises to become the tribe’s leader

perhaps it began with one cave dweller

flattering the successful huntsman

who had stolen their woman

wanting to put a splintered bone

through the hunter’s right eye

but instead for a bit of meat

cleaning the blood from his club

and picking leaches off his

substantially hairy legs