Taking Pity On Pity

“Pity” by no means means “contemptible”,
a mean depredation of a fine word
coined as gaze of sorrowing compassion
we look, we see, we hear, we know, we feel

Pity says, “me, too,” then comes the terror
that we cannot bear, so we need to flee
this hurt that has come too near, that’s now ours,
tragedy is every day, humans ground

particulate into the face…