Stick Boys

Like a tower of graceful giraffes, Ethiopian  
boys on bamboo stilts walk high over the land. 

The boys smile; some have intricate designs
painted on their faces or long, straight legs. 

Their aerial travel allows them to spot the cows 
in high grass, avoid the bites of venomous snakes.

It makes me think of those who bend the knee,
smudge the line between right and wrong—

the bottom-lined CEOs, the well-endowed
university presidents, the media moguls,

the politicians and puffed-up agency heads, 
the bonus-hungry citizens—

They look weak and cowed on the ground
among the vipers.

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The New Verse News, Tuesday, September 23, 2025.

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