putdowns, worse than candy

the allure, and destruction, of the jibe

I teach middle schoolers,

and I can feel their vulnerability

to the jibe, the laugh, the humiliation, the hurt,

I know how easily

I myself can slip and fall into the self-doubt

that calls on us to crash, to wreck,

the putdown is like candy, but worse,

for while both can give a rush of pleasure,

the putdown builds pleasure from another’s pain.

by Henry H. Walker

November 2, ‘19