The Olive Branch
Lace not an olive branch 
With venom and poison
Lace it not
With the spit of words
Unkind and haughty
Lace it not 
With foul breath
Ferrying untruths and hubris
Lace it not with the sound
Of ignorance and conceit
It is an olive branch

Your suspicions
Swallow
Your trepidations
Voice not 
Your fear
Be not seen wearing
Your mettle 
Hang on the neck like a bishop’s crucifix
Your magnanimity
Stretch out like Jesus’s arms on the cross

Lace the olive branch 
With the honeycomb of goodwill
Flavor it
With the honey of gentility
Season it 
With a dove-like tone
Your words in an invitation envelope
Spike it with Winston Churchill’s wisdom
The courage not only to stand up and speak
But also to sit down and listen
It is an olive branch