We are a hard working country.
We work hard.
We work so hard we do not sleep.
We work so hard we do not pray.
We work so hard we break our hearts
working, and get transplants.
We work so hard we ignore children.
We work so hard we eat all day
and taste nothing.
We work so hard we aggress
against each other.
We compete like army ants.
We conduct contests to choose the best worker,
the top dog,
the richest person.
We are sad and never leave our inner selves.
We are cruel and think we are kind.
We give things to each other
to hide our selfishness.
And we wonder
where the birds are flying.
Where the fish are hiding.
Why the rivers smell.
The oceans convulse with hurricanes.
We work so hard turning on lights
we look like a star from the moon.
We transmit so much ruckus
between ourselves,
aliens have shut off their radios.
And something is happening.
Something is waiting.
There is a pause deep inside the stones.
The bottom of the seas.
Plants and animals,
as if waiting for all our work to be done,
and we are gone,
leaving them in peace.