midnight tear
by caridad svich
(December 2012)
the cries of innocents
resound
midst the lingering stains of fresh blood
a hill made of chalk is built to start anew
but what new, here
when memories take hold?
hard spell of fire
for those left
to find reason
when there is none found
despite the crawl through
the evidence of a life
*
today we mourn
the distant day
not so distant now
the lessons un-learned
of arms taken
for the mere price
of a bag of groceries
here we sit
awaiting the new
anxious over the coming doom
brought upon by a soaring cliff
we wrap our arms around each other
we watch the snow aghast
as another winter bears down
furious in its rage
*
earth sounds a bell of hope;
earth sounds a plaintive cry
what weight is here
centuries old
of others who
waited too
for an end seeming nigh?
wait no more
says one
cast another sigh
we are here
in earth’s hold
wrecking damage
toward some unseen prize.
*
it is said
reason prevails
in times such as these,
but what reason this
that swiftly condones
dark terror
in the guise of fiscal bliss?
roll on the day, one says,
hold up your sign
the faint sound of Occupy
o’ertaken now
by rallying cries too many to discern –
weary rage unbound.
*
a few months ago
seeming ages now
we called for peace
for battles waged
on air and land
midst the ancient, dirty sand
how soon forgotten –
can it be?
or would we rather live a lie?
bloodshed there
is the same as here
politics decry
yet we pretend
and walk through our days
buoyed by a strange kind of forgetting
it’s easier to talk of smaller ills
and the constant lure of shopping
*
say no more
what you will
as we hold our arms round together again
expectant for
the blessed promise of doubt
the frost chills
the bloody glass
our voices
a distant shout