Mae Sot Garbage Tip Toy-Land

Down in the dumps today 
Children work not play 
The flies have swarmed 
A stench has formed 
Seagulls cry all day. 

Down in the dumps today 
Maggots pulse and flay
It reeks to hell
Children become unwell 
Amidst a haze of decay. 

Down in the dumps today 
Life’s turned ash grey
Some children are gone 
But nobody mourns
When waste rots away. 

Down in the dumps today 
Children restocked and stay
Given sticks to dig
Scavenge like pigs
Toy-landfill of dismay. 

Where snakes rats 
and broken glass 
torment kids to this day. 

By 
David Kavanagh
Copyright © | Year Posted 2020

Poem

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Flaherty Avatar
August 12, 2020 at 6:09 PM
Kid's skirmish for the best pitch A wealthy persons cast offs is a poor persons treasure
Flaherty Avatar
August 14, 2020 at 11:20 AM
Ditto same here David my 1st world problems seem to pale in comparison . If only we had the humility to contextualize
Kavanagh  Avatar
August 14, 2020 at 3:08 AM
Was trying to write this in a perverse hickory dickory dock style contrasting it with our kids version,
Kavanagh  Avatar
August 14, 2020 at 2:11 AM
Your dead right it’s things like that make me stop bitching about my relative petty issues in life, well for a while anyway cheers
Flaherty Avatar
August 13, 2020 at 5:03 PM
A sad metaphor David for some people's life or lot there in it Thinking what on earth did i do to deserve being dumped here am i no better than that which i am being forced into recycling. Knowing even that is going or destined for a fresh start or better existence
Kavanagh  Avatar
August 13, 2020 at 4:04 AM
Afraid not in this case Christopher the kids are orphans and work for gangs scavenging through the filth all day and hand all the recyclables up to their masters, either that or the sex trade what a choice a fate worse than death, cheers David
Ermine Avatar
August 12, 2020 at 5:12 AM
Very upsetting. Very real. I haven't travelled to any such place. Did you see it in person?
Kavanagh  Avatar
August 12, 2020 at 6:24 AM
Hi Sigrid lucky I’ve never been there, seen a documentary about mae sot recently it’s truly a living hell, you might find some video clips on YouTube, cheers David
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