Oh All My Peoples. oh All My Peoples.

by Paul Nachbar

I am just a person
No more no less
You are just a person too.

I was always just a person
No more no less
You were always just a person too.

Sometimes in our being persons together
We got along perfectly:
Other times we were far less clever.

I will always be just a person
No more no less
You will always be just a person too.

Between us happens all those things
No more no less
That can happen between a person and a person.

Between us happens all those things
No more no less
That should happen between a person and a person.

Between us happens all those things
No more no less
That should not happen between a person and a person.

What do we do? What did we always do?
What do almost always tend to do?
When anything goes remotely wrong between a person and a person?

We summon up those catalogues of phrases
We summon up those catalgues of gestures:
Those catalogues of laudatory and condemnatory phrases and gestures.

We judge such from those catalogues of phrases
We judge such from such catalogues of gestures
We judge partly from such catalogues the largest and smallest phrases and gestures.

We judged from those catalogues of phrases
We judged from those catalogues of gestures
We judged from such catalogues the largest and smallest gestures and phrases..

Ah what next?
What is there left to say?
Five women said to me "shall i compare thee to a summer's day?"

Oh all my peoples, all my peoples:
Oh all my peoples of the past, all my peoples of the present
All my peoples of the future who may or may not be:

I am just a person
No more no less
You are just a person too