War and Children

…Cambodia, Rwanda, Syria…
Wars never cease 
on the earth. Peace is pulverized. 

Each battle drags children into a
vortex of anguish 
in the front line or at home. They 

lose their butterflies among bombs 
and bullets. 
Pure rapture curls like mango peel 

in tension. Tender lives tarnish.
Lullabies are 
lost in the death rattle. Scattered 

young blood stains history. The 
voice from beneath 
the headstone is not an auditory 

hallucination, but a doleful echo 
from a little soul.
The orphans get food in the refugee 

camp, but where will they seek their 
lost mom and dad? 
Childhood charms are mutilated. 

They’re prisoners of trauma. A 
platoon of terror marches 
through their mental corridors.

First published in "The Humans in the Wild" anthology by Swallow Publishing, US.
Copyright © | Year Posted 2021

Poem

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Book: Diverse Voices: The Poetry of Human Rights and the Pursuit of Peace