Saffron City Press

AJ Layon

Orlando, Florida

Like a wolf whose foreleg is caught in a toothed steel trap Like a mother bear seeing her cubs attacked from afar, unable to protect them Like a soldier who, after an IED explodes, looks to where her legs once were Like a mother in Harawa watching her life go up in the flames of a pogrom Like a White Bellbird searching for its mate

Like all of these My ears ring with howls, screams

Looking for the source of this agony I see nothing, no one

It is then I realize the sound is my heart crying out in pain You are gone.

AJ Layon is a socialist, internationalist, physician, teacher, student, and (inadvertent) whistle-blower who has worked for 43 years throughout the US and in Zones of Conflict in Central America and West Africa. Born alone, he will so die. Born a blank slate, he will continue to struggle for justice for all until the end. His comrades are all who struggle for a just and livable world.