I saw in the others
lessons unlearned

never my own mirror
in the fog of necessity

captive to believed true vision
now I stand before the firing squad

don’t blindfold my complicity
target my oppression

my genocide I commit
I placed on others

no relief in sight an insight
no protection paid protection

my light unto… darkens
dims to horizons self contempt

curious       [what it means in exile] —to be

now I live
held hostage

most of the rest       live at the edge of this place
not of it not in it     as innocents run shelter to shelter

Jonathan Memmert is a poet who resides in New York City. Jonathan has an MFA in creative writing from The City College of New York. Jonathan is the associate editor for the online poetry journal for emerging poets, The Marbled Sigh.