Stonework

 

We assumed democracy 
to be as unassailable as granite.
We didn't know it would shatter
in the hands of an errant stonemason.

We trusted the economy 
to be as enduring as quartz.
We didn't expect it to splinter
like slate when mishandled.

We believed we had built a foundation 
as firm as bedrock.
We didn't realize we had built overtop
restless fault lines.

Now we must pick up the scattered fragments
and envision a mosaic we cannot see.
May we sculpt a new beginning from the polished 
marble cast aside.