How was it when
some teacher stood before
century old ten-year-olds and said,
“We’ve conquered here
we’ve conquered there,”
and,
“This is how to read a key:
you’ll find the red, is Britain’s land,
100 times our island’s size
our empire expands,
by staked flags and dropkicked souls
fledgling governments disband.”

Did her voice betray sarcasm,
and did the kids respond, hooray?
Or is it more like today,
my voice straddling objective,
while kids keep and keep on asking
adeptly pointed questions?

I suppose it’s how we started too
Danckaerts and his voyaging crew
sought Breukelen for its tolerance
signed false treaties, not alliances.
Not that they would know that yet,
(Stay neutral you
I say to me
coach myself
with little lies
Christopher Columbus still heroic
in their tooth-fairied mind’s eyes.)
American history comes next year,
and anyway,
let them be children
read young adult books
about cliques and cats.

Grasping for reference points,
I explain it like this:
“Think of your pets,
they like to piss,
on areas to claim their own.
Once in the wild
pre-full-landfill problems,
this would have been mild,
but times have changed
and now we’re armed
with litter boxes
of chemical pellets
so we think it’s alright
to destroy
things not done our way
and that’s what’s wrong with imperialism, class.”

“Wait, why would we bomb them
if we want to help?”