Ice winds freeze brave DC’s air

On a chill January morning

As the world watches and waits for

Oaths of office to be sworn in,

When a slight young woman,

Wrapped tight in yellow and red,

Steps on up to the mic

About to thrill global millions

With the words that she read.

Those words, her bright voice,

Call out from that Capitol

And the world listens,

Transfixed, by this

Resounding recital.

Six glorious minutes of

Powerful oration

Ring across all lands,

Helping heal her nation.

There’s no glimpse of nerves or of

Once youthful stutters

We hear clearly each line,

Hang on every word that she utters.

Her hands are expressive

Hope shines beacon like from her face

And the truth of her words show

We share just one single race.

We’re united through shared hopes

Governed by the same aspirations

Regardless of beliefs,

Colours or creeds or because

We hail from different nations.

We’re all striving to

Forge our own connections and unions

To seek what stands before us

Searching for a common harmony

One that does not divide us.

We can all find the light if

We’re only brave enough to

See it and

To be it.

Four years we’ve held on

And anxiously waited,

Nervously watching,

Our collective breath baited.

As our burdens divided

And divisions sowed hatred.

We were tumbling fast

Headlong into the night

When, Heaven helped us all,

By bringing the young poet

To reminds us there is,

Always, light.

If we only step past and look to repair

We’ll find truth, faith and trust

And the compassion to share.

So we listen, we hear,

Old men like me even cry,

And the whole world relaxes,

Just a little,

To let out a relieved sigh.

Heaven help this white man

If he turns his back or

Kicks the man crawling away.

Heaven help him if he can’t

Ease that struggle

If only for one hour or one day.

Heaven praise that young poet

For reminding us what we need to do,

By keeping hatred from the mighty

And the mighty from the small

And for her words, young but wise,

That have helped heal us all.

I raise my glass, doff my cap,

And offer up my thanks

To this youngest of laureates,

An incredible supernova.

She’s such a remarkable poet,

With a performance like no other I’ve seen.

I ask myself,

Does she even know it?

How her pen and voice have

Crossed borders and sailed over waters,

Pushing past our fears to remind of

What it is that unites us.

Her poise, her grace, and

Her style on this day

Are hard to articulate

But, simply put, in another’s words,

She’s blown us all away.

From the spoiling of tea,

You shaped your

Own brand of democracy.

Now the world looks on

In hope and with admiration,

Each state, new and old,

In awe of your nation,

As you write a fresh new chapter

With this inauguration

Free from discord’s dark shade,

With the prickly burr shed

And now gone,

We can all sow seeds

Of hope and love

And watch them thrive,

Growing strong under the

Warmth of the sun.

Far too soon the yellow and red

Tour-de-force comes to a halt

On my cheeks I feel the tears

On my lips I taste the salt.

She steps done, backs away from the mic,

Turns, resumes her seat among the crowd.

In the silence that follows

Her verses continue singing out loud.

That skinny young black girl,

With her vibrant proud frame,

Speaking words that brought such comfort

And now, surely, will bring her fame.

Let’s all take pride and shout out loud

For Amanda Gorman is her name.

History eyes us,

And it spies us,

Don’t make our

Future selves

Despise us.

We’ve done it before

We can do it once more.

Let’s give all that we’ve got and

Not throw away our shot.

If we’ve nothing to stand for

What has anything been for?

For, though unfinished,

In need of repair, and

After all we have seen

We can climb any hill

When, united,

We all have the same dream.