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# The Shape of Our Faces
- URL: https://randalljgreene.com/the-shape-of-our-faces/
- Published: 2026-02-18T13:08:57.000Z
- Updated: 2026-02-18T13:08:57.000Z
- Description: As I remember that I am dust, I am reminded that community makes us more. We are dust together.
- Author: Randall Greene
- Tags: Poetry

draw my finger through the dust  
—until I see the shape of our faces,  
—a man, a woman, a child, a person;  
in dust, we are all the same,  
—creatures of earth and water,  
—growth and decay.  
well, can dust feel this way?  
—this sadness, this fear,  
—this isolation, despair?  
can dust hold a hand in the darkness  
—and squeeze reassurance  
—that another dust-person is here  
—where hope draws near?  
can it catch every tear?  
—before they fall to the ground,  
—form a pool of thick mud—  
—or is it blood all around  
—that makes this mourning-filled sound?

we are dust, we are,  
—yet we are not dust alone;  
for as we carry one another  
—we create for ourselves a home  
—where we are  
——seen, if not safe;  
——whole, if not warm;  
——friends, if not free;

draw my finger through the dust  
—until I see the shape of our faces,  
—a man, a woman, a child, a person;  
in dust, we are all the same,  
—beauty, together,  
—by myriad name.