Kalahari Bushman (CTG)

Kalahari

The thirsty Bushman and his family walk
toward water with dusty running
shoes and ragged sackcloth,

walking on the sun's wheel,
on a cultural schism,
as time sifts away.

He's carrying digging stick, bow,
arrows tipped with poison
to hunt antelope
in the brutal sun.

The Government has sealed the spring,
so the Bushman and family walk
toward water uncertain
where they'll sleep.

The Bushman and his family walk
toward water with dusty shoes
unwanted in their own land,

walking on the sun's wheel,
on a cultural schism,
as time sifts away.

Christopher T. George

"For Some Bushmen, a Homeland Worth the Fight," New York Times, November 5, 2010.