Of Scars And Stories Poem by Elizabeth Padillo Olesen

They are scars in history
of wars and deaths
of violence and misdeeds
of sense of duty and endless guilt.

They are scars in the body
in broken limbs and tortured
minds, in nights without sleep
and constant flash of past images.

They are scars in communities
in segregation and isolation
in the false search for security
by built up high walls against neighbors.

They are scars in the human soul
for having chosen hate instead of love,
for inflicting pain on others and
bearing the pain in our own being,
for building walls instead of bridges
among all faiths and communities.