We are Words

Their meaning, their dreaming,

The message they’re streaming.

We use them to shape our lives, as bribes

To make enemies and allies,

We use them to find our tribes.

We are words,

Their story, their song,

They define right and wrong,

Always on the tip of your tongue.

We pin them to the page

We read them to be amazed.

We are words,

They connect us, correct us,

Make us find one another

Yes, they collect us.

Ashes to ashes, dust to dust,

A lie, a promise, a trust.

We are words,

We dance with them through time,

They are our partners in rhyme

Cool, cruel or kind,

The stitching in our story-line

The eloquent ties that bind.

by Paul Lyalls, Word2017 Poet in Residence