JEST ARFUL

by Richard Fullerton

SORRY IS, AS SORRY WAS

Canada apologized for all the things they done

t' Indians an' Inuits at the point of a gun:

like herdin' kids t' boardin' schools t' bleach `em lily white

an' teach `em that their culture, though quaint, was hardly quite

what folks in a society that needed t' drive cars

required to make potato chips an' fight computer wars.

An' furthermore they're pledgin' 200 mil or more

t' council those that they abused an' settle up the score.

All they used t' give `em was a blanket an' a drink,

now they've progressed to Xanax, an' some sessions with a shrink.

We did the same stuff here, but still we keep our profile low

where oil wells roam the huntin' grounds an' chieftains chant "Bingo!

Behind the righteous smokescreens y' can hear a soft echo

in the halls of empty schools we built a century ago:

"Jesus is the only God, he died for all our sin,

don't eat with your fingers `cause y' don't know where they've been,

shine your shoes an' press your pants an' wear `em both at meals.

A Christian child don't cheat or lie, an' never, ever, steals.

But if you do take somethin', if your new morals ever crack,

stand up an' apologize, then give the thing right back."

[February 1998]