Once again, our thoughts turn to Auden,

Talking art in a Europe on the brink.

As springtime breaks, the bird of peace has flown;

The sick old men dispense the taste of death.

And Icarus? Nobody would care now

(Just as no one seemed concerned at the time);

An exhibitionist whose stunt went wrong.

While, on streets, a billion screens flicker

With dances of destruction th...

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There seems to be a lot going on in the world, much of it unpleasant. Not that unusual you might think, but the degree of unpleasantness is higher than usual as the USA launch death and destruction on hundreds of people in Iran – many of them ordinary citizens going about their business, including children. While few would pretend that the Iranian regime is a caring or civilised one, raining death...

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Injured mother in smoke falling debris blocks her vision

Dust clouds fill her lungs as she runs,he is hidden

Her baby is out there!

Gasping for air she's spluttering out his name

His cries are drowned out overpowered by shots screams and horror

Whilst rush and panic confuse her intuition

Scarce oxygen she's hoping and wishing

Praying for the return just recently miss...

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Sunlight in their small hands,
rising beyond all brands.

Their courage goes on shining;
they were once growing wings.

Until a missile left their building crumbling,
burying, one by one, their dreams—
the wings that once were growing,
now scattered, fading.

Time refused to stop
as tears continued to drop.

Their parents were seeking
the scattered pieces of their morning.

The in...

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A village in decline,

Where young do not come back;

The old folks keep on ageing:

This is a one-way track,

Which is not new, of course;

It was forever thus:

Tear-stained sons and daughters

Would board the early bus.

But this time gaps appear,

Whose like we never saw;

The thin supply dissolves

In casualties of war,

For boys arrive home wrapped

A...

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As the first one fell,

They all shouted: ‘Missed!’

As the second one fell,

They all shouted: ‘Missed!’

As the third one fell –

Enraged, he drove to the outskirts,

Eager to conjure up the words

For death throes of expired luck,

To paint the smell of burning flesh.

But no words arrived. Nothing came.

Remains were pulled from the remains.

Late...

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Her habit, during nights deprived of peace,

Of dark skies savaged by the usual crowd,

Was to tell the world in her loudest voice:

‘For God’s sake, listen; this madness must cease!’.

But no one did, although she shouted loud.

Close by, stunned citizens with no choice

Took comfort in the echoes of her scream,

While they browsed damage as though in a dream.

Today she was ...

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The seams split from the land to the sea

And dreams of still waters die

The lie of open arms disintegrates

In the slither of the lullaby 

Of reasons and rhymes set to rock us to sleep

But sheep are aimless in a boundless heath

And see no route so dreaded fate ensues 

As the ocean follows the moon

And soon we’ll all be keeping score

Strike one and two, strike three and fo...

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