Who buries the corpses

Who buries the corpses?

There was little warning before the missiles came

Raining down upon the street where children played

Each side adamant that the other was to blame

The buildings collapsed upon those who prayed

Upon the dusty street the limbs were strewn

Left as those still alive sought shelter in desperation

Amongst the rubble on a dusty afternoon

A pack of stray dogs feed upon a lost generation

The jeep prowled the avenues in the town

Rifles at the ready the riders opened fire

Women with their young ones swiftly mown down

Medals for those submitting to a leader’s desire

Who dares to step into the road to retrieve

Becomes the prey of the predator in uniform

In a ruined church a priest begs those to believe

Defending some ancient deity with cruciform

The victor celebrates by denial of water and bread

Flesh still clings to the bones of the starving child

The general declares the world now free of dread

With a hand upon the book he has defiled

I watch the horrors unfold upon the screen

I listen to the evil of those who claim a right of deity

And ask myself about all that I have seen

How can we say this is in the name of humanity

Copyright: David Hopcroft October 2024