In Their Mothers' Eyes

We've come to pay our last respects -
So hard to know what to say next.
It's just harsh truth that we excise
As we convey our last good-byes.

When words alone don't help us grieve
We search for what we can believe.
While facts can foster dissonance,
Emotions field a false defense.

When hate and willfulness combine
Coarse words and actions fall in line
And set the stage for tragedy -
No time to think with clarity.

Teens roaming free with time to spend
Devised a "hit" - with guns from friends;
A drive-by aimed to score revenge
For some "wrong" pride pledged to avenge.

As neighbor's child went out to play
Stray bullets took its life away.
The "mean streets" were its enemy
But grown adults refused to see.

The tales that trend the evening news
Do little more than to confuse -
With homage paid to ad hoc views
They paint a scene with changing hues.

But, we see in their mothers' eyes
An anguished look - they realize
Such grave events can't be reversed;
That day relived as truly cursed.
Copyright © | Year Posted 2023

Poem

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Maul Avatar
October 16, 2023 at 9:15 AM
Excellent writing
Ransburg Avatar
October 27, 2023 at 8:31 AM
Michael, Thank you for reading the poem and your comment. John
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