Native American Lit.

TEARS OF A NATION

I met a man of many colors

And a tear was upon his cheek.

"Old man" I ask, "why do you cry

With such an agonizing weep?"

"Oh child" this man he says to me,

"My heart is broken in so many ways

That I believe this day to end

Will find me out stretched and far within

The encompassing earth of sin."

I sat down beside this man

And asked him "do not cry.

For what you think is so bad

That life will pass you by?"

He looks at me with such sad eyes.

And weeps ever more.

He holds his hands out to me

And alas, I do see

The anguish of his heart.

For his hands were different colors

One is red and the other white,

A leg he unclothed for me

Was as yellow as could be

And his other leg as black as night.

"I am the father of the world.

In case you do not know.

And my children have grown apart

And fight among themselves.

For when they do not get along

My arms and legs and hands and feet

Destroys the very life of me.

My hands of red and white

Will not feed this face of night.

And my legs of black and yellow,

Will not stand beneath this body

And support my heart and soul.

For they argue far too much,

And now I have grown old.

So here I sit in this haven

Of unwelcomeness.

And when this day ends,

A father I will not be.

For my children of many nations

Have forgotten how to care for me.

-Unknown

Reflection:

When Reading this poem what really stuck out to me was that the author uses an old man which represented "Father Earth". In this poem the author shows compassion for the old man, and shows that people are slowing destroying their on existence through violence. The author also states that the old man will not be a father any more (Earth), because he will die from brokenness because if his children (Humans).




Dear Diary,

We have reached the new world and there are many new and interesting things around us. As I was exploring the surroundings today I found a Young woman with yellow skin. Though we first were afraid of each other soon we were trying to overcome of language differences. She knows a bit of my language from "white man" that have come before us.

Later, before I decide I must go the lady read a few of peoples poems with me. The one that stood out the most to me was one she called "Tears of a Nation". It spoke of and out man who was really father of the earth (I think that means Jesus), and he was being broken by the violence of his people. It reminds me of a conversation between Jesus and a child before he was crucified. Maybe these yellow skin People are so different from us?