{"id":8471,"date":"2019-06-19T10:33:49","date_gmt":"2019-06-19T14:33:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.chinesepen.org\/english\/?p=8471"},"modified":"2019-06-20T14:48:03","modified_gmt":"2019-06-20T18:48:03","slug":"gregory-orr-nothing-and-the-incident-in-the-streets","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.chinesepen.org\/english\/gregory-orr-nothing-and-the-incident-in-the-streets","title":{"rendered":"Gregory Orr: NOTHING AND THE INCIDENT IN THE STREETS"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"South Carolina State College<\/em><\/div>\n
Orangeburg, South Carolina, 1968<\/em><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Tlatelolco Square, Mexico City, 1968<\/em><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Tiananmen Square, Beijing, China, 1989<\/em><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Nothing forced those kids<\/div>\n
to go out there.<\/div>\n
Nothing made them insist on<\/div>\n
their foolish demands.<\/div>\n
\u2014<\/div>\n

<\/p>\n

Those kids believed in nothing.<\/div>\n
They respected nothing,<\/div>\n
you could see that by the way<\/div>\n
they behaved.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Nothing mattered to them<\/div>\n
once they got excited.<\/div>\n
When we were young, nothing<\/div>\n
like this<\/div>\n
could have happened.<\/div>\n
We knew nothing was worth<\/div>\n
this much trouble.<\/div>\n
\u2014<\/div>\n
Nothing told them to go home<\/div>\n
before it was too late.<\/div>\n
Nothing scolded them<\/div>\n
for the foolish children<\/div>\n
they were. Nothing warned them<\/div>\n
of the serious consequences.<\/div>\n
Nothing said: This is not<\/div>\n
a carnival or celebration,<\/div>\n
but a serious threat to the state.<\/div>\n
\u2014<\/div>\n
Nothing proceeded<\/div>\n
exactly according<\/div>\n
to the rules.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
The police arrived.<\/div>\n
They followed orders<\/div>\n
precisely.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Nothing was left<\/div>\n
to chance.<\/div>\n
Nothing had been<\/div>\n
anticipated<\/div>\n
by our rulers<\/div>\n
down to the last<\/div>\n
numbered hair<\/div>\n
on the protestors’<\/div>\n
heads,<\/div>\n
down to the last<\/div>\n
sparrow’s feather.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Nothing took place<\/div>\n
that shouldn’t have.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Nothing went wrong.<\/div>\n
\u2014<\/div>\n
Nothing could have prepared<\/div>\n
us for what happened next.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
It could have, but<\/div>\n
it didn’t. Nothing<\/div>\n
like it had been seen before.<\/div>\n
But not by us.<\/div>\n
We were surprised and shocked<\/div>\n
by all the blood. Nothing<\/div>\n
could have surprised us more.<\/div>\n
\u2014<\/div>\n
Nothing was seen of them again.<\/div>\n
Nothing was heard of them.<\/div>\n
Nothing was mentioned<\/div>\n
in the press.<\/div>\n
By dawn<\/div>\n
of the next day<\/div>\n
the authorities had already<\/div>\n
scrubbed the streets,<\/div>\n
painted over the graffiti,<\/div>\n
and removed the posters.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Nothing came of their demands.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Their sacrifice changed<\/div>\n
nothing. Nothing<\/div>\n
was the same afterward.<\/div>\n
Nothing went on as usual.<\/div>\n
Nothing was different<\/div>\n
than it had ever been.<\/div>\n
\u2014<\/div>\n
It’s easy enough, after<\/div>\n
it’s over, to demand:<\/div>\n
Why didn’t you do<\/div>\n
something?<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
If you had been there<\/div>\n
you would have seen<\/div>\n
nothing could have<\/div>\n
prevented it. Nothing<\/div>\n
could have stepped in<\/div>\n
and stopped it.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Nothing had the power<\/div>\n
to halt it right there.<\/div>\n
So we waited for nothing.<\/div>\n
And nothing arrived<\/div>\n
in the nick of time.<\/div>\n
Nothing kept the bullets<\/div>\n
back. Nothing stood<\/div>\n
like a wall between<\/div>\n
the rifles<\/div>\n
and their human targets.<\/div>\n
Nothing saved them.<\/div>\n
\u2014<\/div>\n
Darkness of human<\/div>\n
hearts. Only<\/div>\n
following orders.<\/div>\n
Caught up<\/div>\n
in the moment’s<\/div>\n
excitement.<\/div>\n
A small, necessary<\/div>\n
wrong for a higher<\/div>\n
cause.<\/div>\n
Are these<\/div>\n
excuses or explanations?<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
They tell us nothing.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Nothing is the key<\/div>\n
to this brutal mystery.<\/div>\n
Nothing can explain<\/div>\n
what happened here.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Nothing has the power<\/div>\n
to get inside their<\/div>\n
motives, what drove<\/div>\n
them to do such things.<\/div>\n
Nothing will tell us<\/div>\n
how they justified<\/div>\n
to themselves<\/div>\n
the shed blood.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Nothing has seen<\/div>\n
such shuffling<\/div>\n
of masks before:<\/div>\n
the mask of regret<\/div>\n
replacing the mask<\/div>\n
of rage.<\/div>\n
Nothing<\/div>\n
has seen such behavior<\/div>\n
since time began.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Nothing will tell us<\/div>\n
how they sleep<\/div>\n
soundly at night<\/div>\n
while others do not<\/div>\n
sleep at all, and<\/div>\n
others sleep forever.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Nothing was further<\/div>\n
from the truth.<\/div>\n
Not a lot further.<\/div>\n
Maybe the distance<\/div>\n
of those bodies<\/div>\n
laid end to end.<\/div>\n
\u2014<\/div>\n
The incident was nothing<\/div>\n
to speak of.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Source: https:\/\/news.virginia.edu\/content\/orrs-poem-gets-crowds-response-international-festival<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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