Surely we can talk again,

without using cloven tongues

that lisp and hiss

cleft meanings,

disguising our true intent.

Surely we can smile again,

with teeth washed clean

of each other’s blood,

mould lips into the forgiving kiss

Jesus gave to Judas Iscariot.

Surely we can touch palms again

without losing caste,

hold fast in an embrace

that will keep us face to face

as future friends, not yester-foes.

Surely we can age together,

teach your youth and mine,

what they need to know,

about how close we came

to committing joint infanticide.

Surely we can offer a common prayer

in our separate dialects

to our separate, equal Gods.

Have we not proof enough 

that my God is not stronger than yours,

nor yours any stronger than mine?

[17 June 2003. Published in DAWN,14 August 2003.  Also in When Bush Comes to Shove, & Other Writings [2006], p.285]