The Earth In Times Of WarA Poem by daninstockholm  I. Irene digs into the earth with a worn spade Turning over the soil like a slow prayer And with each movement Words come forth from the dirt Black letters on white and silver signs, Wrapped in dirt and sand Words like “Faith” “Love” “Freedom” “Sacrifice” Words of promise whispered To her inner being As if to remind her that her job Isn’t just to lay people to rest But to help those who remain and To ponder why
II. James was a proud man He had been tilling this soil like his father before And his father before him He learned early in life to love the feel Of the earth as it passed through his young fingers He played with it, caressed it like a lover, listening As if there were voices of stillness hidden In those moments that he never heard anywhere else. Words offered up to only his ears Words like “Belonging” “Family” “Sacrifice” “Duty” Words he never learned to question From voices he recognized Telling him this is where he belonged.
III. The wake of savage destruction the soil But the howl is deafening.
IV. His son for this, dug into the Blood-stained scorched earth Kurt often thought of his father And longed to be there, to tell him he was Afraid, something he could never tell his friends Something only his father could understand He tried to run his fingers through the dirt To hear the whispers his father told him about Longing for the peace of words whispered to only him Words like “Peace” “Quiet” “Forgiveness” “Belonging” But war is a cruel Mistress and will take her toll.
V When a kindred soul is laid to rest It cradles them into it like a mother Whispering words for a sense of calm Words like “Rest” “Peace” “Eternity” “Forgiveness” Words that only the resting can hear Not intended for us who remain Nothing Irene can hear, nor James.
The words the earth has whispered to them before Now ring hollow Replaced by the sorrow of Words like “Pain” “Greif” “Loss”
When parents bury their young in times of war The earth has no consoling words that suffice The earth feels the grief
too deeply. As they walk away from their sons grave Irene can no longer do her task of comforting James no longer feels the ground like a lover The reality of what they’ve given the earth Is too painful.
VI. Later that night, the wind blows through The windows of James and Irenes house Taking on an ancient task Carrying the voices of those we’ve lost To those who remain. Comfort comes in the whispered words like “Peace” “Solace” “Forgiveness” The wind blows over the battlefields too Soothing the earths’ wounds Telling her lover “This too shall pass”
© 2015 daninstockholmFeatured Review
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daninstockholmStockholm, SwedenAboutTime gives us moments made up of empty canvasses. How will you use yours? Happily married male, American born but now happy to be living in Stockholm, loves to learn and experience new things new p.. more..Writing
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