I am a quaking aspen, watching the news,
as missiles rain down in Ukraine, rockets
on Israel, and China starts military drills
as a "stern warning" to Taiwan.
Is this world peace on its way?
Let me count the ways a world implodes.
I am looking at spring blossoms, smelling
their fragrance, my heart blooming
with gratitude for the beauty of this world.
Do soldiers take a deep breath of spring
between the bombs?
Hope is a dream of ten years from now,
eloquent young black leaders
in the halls of power, rich old white guys
having passed from their posts,
their attempts to end democracy
and exert totalitarian rule
and exert totalitarian rule
vanquished.
We live in hope.
I took a few of the directives from the NaPoWriMo prompt. You can tell I am watching the news again. Sigh. The two Justins, Jones and Pearson, representatives expelled from Congress by Republicans for demonstrating for gun control, are two of the brightest lights I have heard from lately. I hope one of them (or both!) runs for President one day.
I. Love. Your. Poem. Wow! "Let me count the ways a world implodes." and to set that against the aspen and the flowers and later, the youth and the Justins--is to show that there is a beautiful world to save.
ReplyDeleteOh, Sherry...how is it possible to think of gun *bans* as a protection against tyranny? Hitler banned guns. What "gun debates" do in the US is drive sales, which is one reason why Tennessee refused to hear one.
ReplyDeleteSo, is there a solution to the problem of gun violence?
Why homicide-suicides? Before Lilly persuaded the commercial media to suppress it, the pattern was unmistakable. There's a very specific mental illness that's almost always associated with drugs. Too often those drugs are prescription medications. The people who want to be sure the depressed get medical help need to pay closer attention to how the efforts to help are working. Keeping firearms away from patients is good but if they're not treated promptly for "Prozac Dementia" they'll use other things that inflict more pain on more innocent people.
For violence, generally...more distance among people helps. We are a violence-prone species but why is Canada less violence-prone than the US? Not that youall don't have guns or haven't had cases of homicide-suicide, but as a nation you *do* have more healthy distance. We need to learn from this.
Canada banned assault weapons. It is assault weapons that do so much damage - other guns only fire one shot at a time.
DeletePolarization is another problem. I probably agreed with you a lot more before 1988 than after. I still like you. And your poems.
ReplyDeleteYou have captured it, Sherry! We live with such hopelessness on so many fronts, but still keep the hope. Two two young Tennesseeans give us faith that there MAY be a better tomorrow!
ReplyDeleteYes. Those two have inspired me greatly.
ReplyDeleteHappy Easter Sherry
ReplyDeleteMuch💖love
more spring blossoms less news
ReplyDeletePeace to you.