'They' (a poem)

 

Who are ‘They’? You know,

the ones who said it would rain

today. Are they the same ‘They’

that claim a glass of red wine

a day is good for you? Or are

they the ‘They’ that decided

quinoa, blueberries and chia

seeds needed a superlative?

‘They’ said the pandemic would

change everything, ‘They’

promised a new normal. But

then again, ‘They’ promised

to be carbon neutral by 2030.

‘They’ say mental illness is on

the rise yet ‘They’ are spending

unprecedented resources on it.

 

[Oh, you mean the ‘They’ who raise wages?

Or the ‘They’ who let inflation spiral?]

Which ‘They’ is it who are

calling for Peace? The ‘They’ that

call for ceasefires? Surely not the

same ‘They’ that are profiting

from arms sales to rich warlords

and using hateful speech on

‘Their’ platforms?

These are the ‘They’ who hide

behind a pronoun when

delivering news of death, poverty,

corruption and failure. The same

‘They’ who suddenly personify

when plaudits, praise and

popularity are the order of the day.

Is it time that ‘They’ took a back seat

and ‘We’ became more responsible?

But who are ‘We’, if not just not ‘They’?

Whether we ignore it or not, there is a thread

which connects each ‘I’ to each other ‘I’.

There’s no unity in ‘We’ and ‘They’.

Realise your ‘I’ in someone else’s ‘I’

and maybe we can start to reconcile.