“This piece was inspired by Save Our Seniors Network and their struggle to protect and provide quality healthcare for Japanese American seniors.” – Kaze Jones
Save our seniors,
Who are fighting to survive…to live out peacefully the rest of their lives.
But echoing their past struggles and cries,
Now How could it be, close to 79 years,
Since our Japanese elders were being forced to relocate and are being evicted from their homes, living in fear, wiping away replenished teaaaaars
Of trauma, being driven out, like the ashes that drifted Away from hiroshima, and the atom bomb, the, mistakes of our past haunting our grandfathers, and our mothers mommas,
While we try to live in peace, as our voices fade away like the buddhist mantras,
Theres so much turmoil in this world, It feels selfish to ask to listen to our problems,
But this is for alla us, This isnt an issue for just the jichans and bachans,
This is for anyone who has respect for those who taught us,
The ones who fought for democracy so peace could be bestowed upon us,
The wise ones who paved the way unsheathing their katanas,
Stepping up to an axis of evil to protect our sons and daughters,
Now we who are here, in existence today,
Cant turn our heads and simply look away,
We have to reciprocate that same go for broke spirit, willing to risk it all so that our elders can live out the rest of their days, In historical facilities like sakura and keiro in LA,
Where bicultural intermediate care can be provided, A taste of native dishes that offer a plate of nostalgia to be delighted by our grandparents who are livin inside it,
Where soldiers from the 442nd regiment have even resided, Internment camp survivors who still bear the weight of the pain that are constantly reminded, Of being deemed 4c, enemy alien to a nation they were willing to die for, but not to be alienated into camps to die in,
But whats the difference from the era of Roosevelt to president biden,
We must synergize, and unify then,
To remain vigilant and stand up for those who no longer have the ability to keep on fighting,
We cant seem to learn from our mistakes,
Just as the human race, is watching our ice shelves break, the drying up of our lakes, endangered species on the brink of mass extinction, while greed and capitalism have ransacked this whole place,
So please,
Help us to save our seniors Itll provide the special care that our elders like my baachan who passed away last year couldnt find,
She was on waitlist for keiro, Sakura and keiai,
But crossed over due to covid and now i feel like i can properly say goodbye,
That i didnt want to sit around to do nothing and cry, Im going to join with my brothers and sisters and arms, and combine all of our wills to say that we tried, because the memory of my obaachan will never ever die.
Save our seniors
Kaze Jones