How Can We Leave Them Behind

Is there a time when friendship does not count, Where bonds forged in war are callously forgotten Is now the time for their suffering to willfully discount As a passing blight, a chore ill-gotten? Is desperation always someone else’s burden, To be observed but ultimately ignored, Their fate unclear, easier to draw that curtain To an inconvenient truth only in words deplored. To politician’s promises are tenuous, They matter only when there’s gain, Integrity is often deemed too arduous, Little caring for other’s strife and pain. But to those of us who conflict shared, Who know by name those left behind, Fully aware of all they dared, Our life with theirs lies intertwined. What can we say, what can we do This cruel injustice to make right, But raise our voice, shout what is true, Honor our debt, correct this blight.