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Best Poems Written by Julia Sawatzky

Below are the all-time best Julia Sawatzky poems as chosen by PoetrySoup members

Details | Julia Sawatzky Poem

Ashes of my olive grove

When I was just four,
Baba would walk me through the olive groves,
his land stretching endlessly,
acres of trees—each one a memory,
each one rooted deep in the soil of home.
He’d set up a ladder for me,
let me climb,
picking the dark, ripe olives
from the branches heavy with history.

“Go inside,” he’d say,
“bring a bucket of water.”
I ran, feet light on the earth,
filled the bucket from the well,
its coolness a moment of peace.

But then—
a scream, sharp and raw,
cut through the air.
I rushed outside,
and saw the flames—
huge, fierce,
devouring the olive trees,
the ones Baba had cared for,
the ones my ancestors had planted.

In the distance,
soldiers stood,
their smiles cold,
ruining everything we had known,
burning the heart of our land.

I dropped the bucket.
The water poured uselessly on the ground,
while the fire took what we had left—
our home, our history,
our future,
turned to ash.

Details | Julia Sawatzky Poem

Tears in Gaza

The wives wail for their fallen husbands' embrace,
The children's tears fall on their mothers' lifeless face,
Men beg for mercy from soldiers in the fray,
I weep, powerless to save them from this dismay.

Displaced and far from home,
Amidst the rubble, they're forced to roam.
Decaying remains of neighbors near,
A haunting sight that fills hearts with fear.

It's not just recovery they seek,
But survival, amidst chaos and bleak.
Innocent bones, a painful sight,
Desperate pleas for bread, day and night.

The children of olive trees weep, pleading the world for aid,
Their cries echo until they are silenced at last.
How many lives must be lost before we call it what it truly is, I ask
Not a conflict, but a genocide that’s paid. 

The indigenous of the land nourish the earth with their tears 
Their innocence shattered, dreams consumed by fears. 
The planes fly above them, with terror in their eyes 
One last breath until their light dies

The Arab nations, their laughter echoing from afar,
We watched fantasy films, cheering for the resistance star.
But when confronted with reality, we're labeled as siding with terror,
A narrative that seeks to silence and undermine, an unjust error.

Let the world hear their cries, their pain, and their plea,
To end the genocide, to set Palestine free.
May justice prevail, and peace be restored,
In Gaza, where tears flow, their spirits soar.

Details | Julia Sawatzky Poem

With Christ, With Palestine

I stand with the weak, as Christ taught,
For a land where the innocent fought,
I condemn the cruel flames,
That destroy without names,
And pray for the peace that was sought.