The Children of Aleppo
today cold perfect day to curl up on the couch cuddle into the cushions
select a favorite book thrust my toes toward the fire the morning quiet
the neighborhood like a graveyard no one about snowflakes balance on the sage
the sun is out snow glistens as it melts dripping moisture onto the thirsty earth
christmas cards still in the package maybe they are for next christmas even the wind
is lazy today still snuggled in the mother and father playing makebelieve
tell the children about a jolly fat man dressed in red who drives a team of reindeer
on christmas eve brings good children gifts a bag of switches for bad children
... I wonder... what did the children of Aleppo do?
worlds collide they say it is civil war life grinds to a halt
war machines take the streets life a nightmare the volume of war
turned up children scream grown men cry
misery is everywhere everyone trying to escape find a safe place
someone dreams of the warmth of straw in the barn sunbeams filter through
dust motes in the air eating figs on a summer's day wasting the afternoon because we can
memories of another time today is cold our homes in rubble
the road home has vanished struck from the face of the earth death and destruction
the symbol of war is everywhere citizens mutter search the rubble
for bread the spirit of man down but not out
comfortable in our warm beds we wonder how they do it
could we do the same could we survive could our children
December 18, 2016
11 comments:
The comfort of Christmas can numb us from the horrors a bit, but in the end it will eat us. Those who can watch it, or press a button... can they sleep at night?
I do what you are doing these days especially Annell - you make powerful points and juxtapositions using this form that really resonate... With Best Wishes Scott
The children of Aleppo..........living in a man made hell. I feel like North America is poised on the edge of a cliff. I hope we dont topple over into experiencing warlike conditions on our own continent. Sigh.
:( An understanding posture. Well written...
Your wonderful style of writing shine through. AL the questions all the thoughts well pieced. I am riveted throughout the reading
Happy Holidays
Much love...
Thank you Annell, for being you. Seeing past the obvious and telling your truth. Your comparisons are both apt, and caused this reader to gasp more than once.
Elizabeth
Yes, we could. There are many still alive that endured and survived wars where senseless bombing took place especially in Europe in WW2. Some bombing was terror bombing like that of London and some was careless where bombers turned back shed their bombs on farms and schools and houses to berable to get home quicker. I lived through that and rulers and politicians today still don't consider the populace of any account in wartime.
Fate seems so haphazard, doesn't it?
I saw a video clip of Aleppo yesterday, where a woman was screaming for all her dead children in an air strike and a dazed and wounded child who has forgotten to cry...
Worlds apart and yet we all have the same needs - comfort, warmth, safety.. i believe the next generation will have to survive.. it would be far better if they could live however
I often wonder too if we could withstand such suffering. Your poem contrast so well the privileges we are used to versus the losses the people of Aleppo have endured. It's all so sad.
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