I am Other

I am Other.

Irish in descent,
full of fiery temper,
a boozehound.
Somewhere, in my history,
Norse raiders came a-raiding,
burning books,
heedless of their magic,
and raping,
which could be why I'm here,
not that I condone book-burning,
or rapine.

I am Other,
Italian in descent,
full of fiery temper,
a boozehound.
Somewhere, in my history,
Romans trampled matriarchal goddesses,
and raped,
which could be why I'm here,
Not that I condone trampling,
or rapine.

I am Other,
Scots in descent,
full of fiery temper,
a boozehound.
Somewhere, in my history,
clan clashed with clan,
and raped,
which could be why I am here.
Not that I condone clashing,
or rapine.

I am Other,
English in descent,
full of fiery temper,
A boozehound.
Somewhere, in my history,
brave men sailed through unknown oceans,
spreading the diseases of civilisation,
and her miserly sister, Christianity,
Not that I condone pestilence,
or spiritual pecunary...

I am Other
American in descent,
full of brave, fiery freedom,
A boozehound.
Somewhere, in my history,
other Others were enslaved
and raped,
which may be why I'm here.
Not that I condone slavery,
or rapine...

I am Other, a woman,
Descended from my mother.
Somewhere, in my history,
women were taken,
and given,
enslaved and freed,
worshiped and reviled,
spinsters and mothers,
any of which may be why I am here.
Not that I condone any of the above.

I am Other, a woman,
Descended from my father.
Somewhere, in my history,
men have aspired to noble deeds,
yet committed lesser,
have built, merely to destroy,
Have witnessed their finest visions bear sterile fruit,
fodder for the hearth of reality.
Not that I condone destruction,
or despair.

I am Other
descendant of multiple Others.
Poets and senators sing in my blood,
sculptors, artists, slaves,
simple folk who tilled their fields in peace.
Adventurers, clerics,
seafaring and landbound,
mothers and fathers
can be found in my veins.

so, Brothers, Sisters, sing with me!
For we are all Other,
Unique unto ourselves,
not one fitting neatly
into any category,
but each, and all,
reliant upon an Other.

We are Other!