To be Black
And have joy
Is something to wonder about
Because these days
The ways
In which hatred
And scarcity
And bigotry
And genocide
Crawl into every nook and cranny
Of the world
Have a numbing effect
So.
I wrap myself in the joy
That holds me
And animates me
To be this and that.
Because I know that Black joy
Is policed
And questioned
And still here.
Robert Monson