The Choice is Food
by Mei Li | July 25, 2010 at 9:58 PM
The Choice is Food
and the labels are lying to you
don't you think Kraft has a vested interest
in your cancer research development?
It's all corporations without spending limits
we'll be the wage slaves paying a 3 trillion dollar debt
Orwellian tongued officials won't be alive to see it
i fear the public won't wake in time
to notice freedom has been replaced
by a genetically-modified reality.
The simple act
of rubbing menthol
into your collarbones
reminds me of how easy life is.
I smoothed mint into pulp
cupped my palms around your face
so you knew where herbs in your soup
were born. While the world is burning down
i'm crushing a head of garlic under the heel
of the hand I write with - arranging parsley
into chopped sonnets - taste the Renaissance
when you lift the spoon.
I've learned the further I am
from government-owned news,
the more I remember to fly
and dream...how dare this word be used
to define American democracy - check
the representatives, not the ballots
for the truth in this fable - if you still have
control over your mind, if you've realized
how we have been used in this double-blind
experiment of country versus state,
allow yourself to walk through border towns
remember the illegal immigrants you arrange
as second-class citizens are
slaughtering the cows for your hamburgers
doesn't bother you that they can't speak English
when you can consume without listening
it's easy to scream
when you can't make sense of yourself
if you're ready to remember
the simple act of living
try to force yourself
for one day
to eat an organic red pear
and moon bathe, learn the names
of the trees shading the property
you're financing, but don't live in.
Comments
hmmm great poem with deep meaning
Hi Mei,
It is the great poem indeed, like the way you have put the deep concerns regarding people and the country!! Great thoughts!
Keep it up!
Peace,
Nilima
www.nilichari.wordpress.com
Food
Dear Melissa,
Your poetry once again has moved me... such beauty in your writing and truth in your words. I was raised in Alaska, and in the winter there it was impossible to find fresh, locally grown food as nothing could grow in that climate. But now living in Oregon, I am able to live a more sustainable lifestyle, eat organic food from small, local farms and know that the food I put in my body will make me strong and healthy.
I hope that more people can experience what I can - that locally grown organic food would one day be more affordable for low-income families.
Thanks, always, for sharing your beautiful voice with us!
In friendship,
Jade
Thank you
For always responding :)
In Arizona we have more and more organic markets popping up. I keep seeing the same farmers who grow a few miles down the road set up shop on college campuses and main streets.
For me - there was no going back after I popped heirloom tomatoes into my mouth and tasted sweet mesquite desert honey.
Thank you for listening :)
"...our compassion is the practice of unconditioning." Jakusho Kwong Roshi