The Un Rides On Human Skeletons

The UN Rides on Human Skeletons By Muhammad Nasrullah Khan The UN’s representatives Suited in beautiful attire Torchbearers of justice Warriors against poverty They strut before cameras Magic bags in hands, Walking, heads bowed Carrying weight of the planet. They ponder destiny of the bleeding earth Sitting on cozy chairs The Secretary General pushes peace Promising of better days. Far from the cameras Missing limbs Pay the Cost of War Leaving behind hungry orphaned children Suffering unending grief. In the name of patriotism Young soldiers, torn from family Their eyes like kittens Separated from mother They sleep in ditches dug in mud They kill the enemy during the day And see the dead, dancing and laughing at night. Guilt cripples them more than battle In the loneliness these “brave” men Curse the curses their generals spat at the enemy. Peace This promise rides on human skeletons So absurd, amid a stretch of war. Eight-year old Olena lies in a Ukraine hospital The sun colors her dolls Left in a broken pieces of home Her burnt body, an unread page of her cut-short life What worth is the UNO to her? She never chanced at hello Could only say goodbye. News cameras in Afghanistan, An old man rasping with languid lungs Buries his young son Wiped-Out Because he was a singer UNO charter sings Peace, dignity, and equality On a healthy planet. The blue wrecked ship sinks Peace mocks through shattered spars Sleeping on flowery mats The Security Council dreams Another amazing sermon Preaching peace to the world-wide family Discovering love in human DNA.