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| BBC.com (Source) Fair Use Protesters kneel to pray in Lafayette Square, Washington DC 31 May 2020 |
Come, let us kneel
in the burning streets.
Let us raise our hands to pray
to all that is above the smoke and flame
and all that is below the dust
and stepping stones of civilization.
Come, let us bid farewell
to the golden corpse of our idolatry
and bow our heads before
the rough rows of newly dead
that they may speak
in the poignant illustration
of each fresh grave.
I am writing in solidarity with all protest actions around the world against police brutality in the time of a world health crisis, where loss of life and livelihood has been both indiscriminate and extreme. Now is the time to stand together as citizens of the world against violence and bloodshed.
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Every Word Counts!
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| @skyloverpoetry |
This is an open invitation to poets to use 3 or more words from my Skylover Wordlist in an original poem. If you would like me to read and comment, please paste the link to your page in the comments below.
Well said, Kerry!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Rosemary.
DeleteWonderful, Kerry. All of what is happening is a catalyst for much needed change. Or we will go mad with grief.
ReplyDeleteThe world has been shaken by the throat..not sure how we will all survive 2020.
DeleteTake care, Sherry.
Monday we had a march and rally here, for George Floyd, as well as for a 26 year old First Nations woman from Tofino, shot five times by a policeman in the east making a "wellness" visit. The size and durations of worldwide protest are a sign of hope that everyone seems ready for meaningful change. We have had Enough.
Delete~~~~ amen.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Helen.
DeleteThank you. Kneeling is the perfect gesture.
ReplyDeleteIt is one way of approaching the issue.
DeleteTruly beautiful Kerry. Adding mine here. https://charmedchaos.com/2020/06/01/a-return-to-love/
ReplyDeleteThanks for participating, Linda.
DeleteThis is heart-wrenchingly beautiful, Kerry!💘 I have been following the news and was outraged at the brutality of the police. Let June be the month for justice and change! I especially like; "bow our heads before the rough rows of newly dead that they may speak in the poignant illustration of each fresh grave."💘
ReplyDeleteSo many people have lost their lives. My greatest wish is for less division and a more cohesive approach to the future.
Deletei admire your stamina and courage. well-done. thanks for this. so powerful.
ReplyDeleteLet us, indeed... And may the world show better things when we can stand.
ReplyDeleteI do hope that may be the case.
DeleteThe time has come indeed.
ReplyDeleteMany thanks.
DeleteObserving this event from afar and I am very grateful that I live in a country where law officers rarely corrupt and vindictive.
ReplyDeleteYour poem speaks for all of us, Kerry, so well-written. We must stand together as citizens of the world against violence and bloodshed on the ‘stepping stones of civilization’.
ReplyDeleteThis poem comes from the heart but I can't help feeling defeated by so much grief, hatred and imbalance.
DeleteThanks for this bent knee in solidarity with global protest. Bidding farewell to idolotry is not so easy, as I would venture was something learned in your country's battle with historic racism. How does one renounce what has become the wet part of the sea? Well done, Kerry, and thanks -- Brendan
ReplyDeleteIndeed, Brendan. Story of my life, on repeat. All I do know is people can change for the better, but only if they are willing to take the first step.
DeleteThank you for this reminder. You're right, we will only come together if we make that choice, and somebody has to move first. It's a poignant piece, that moment of prayer is powerful.
ReplyDeleteBut it just keeps happening...
ReplyDeleteThanks for this poem, but the pillaging goes on...
ReplyDeleteIt's hard times to write, at least for me, but even harder to write well, to see to the heart of things when eyes are blurry with tears. This is an excellent response to the current nightmare, mankind's forever nightmare personified for our own generation. Pain seeps through every word, and yet persistence, respect and life, as well. A great wordlist to work from, too--I will see if anything comes.Thanks for adding your voice to the chorus, and for once again helping us write out the tangles of the human condition.
ReplyDeleteI have managed to find some words to go with yours here:
Deletehttps://versiscape-lifesentences.blogspot.com/2020/06/ouroboros.html
I have joined you in solidarity with the protests and in unmasking state murder for what it is. My pantoum:
ReplyDeletehttp://fireblossom-wordgarden.blogspot.com/2020/06/hail-assassin.html
You okay, Kerry?
ReplyDeleteAmen.
ReplyDelete