Hazing

Hazing

beatings
torment 
ridicule
humiliation
brutality
endangerment
degradation
the nuts and bolts
of the perverse
psychological
bonding
mechanism
of hazing

i guess 
hazing
in its blunt and brutal
or sharp and subtle
physical
emotional
and psychological forms
is the reason
most families
stick together
and these sickening rites
of initiation
are passed on
like customs or genes
through the 
generations

i suppose
hazing
is the reason
we eat the shit
of our families
our culture
our church
our government
our bosses
knowing
we're in it together
at least
with the promise
some day
justified by fairness
it'll be our turn
by gentle cunning
or brute force
to beat or charm
our frustrations
disappointments
and humiliations
into a fresh batch
of pledges