The True Story of War

The following poem was written in 2017 when the U.S. was bombing ISIS targets in Afghanistan. I re-post it today to remind us of the struggle in Ukraine and the seemingly neverending plight of refugees in this world. - CK

A Ukrainian family crosses into Slovakia (Peter Lazar, Getty Images)

The True Story of War
 
Refugees tell the true story
of leaders’ declarations of might.
After seeking shelter
from bombs and marauders,
they leave desolation behind
hoping to carry on.
 
What hopes do they carry
with the few things gathered in their bags?
Will children play?
Will the ground be steady?
Will families reunite in foreign lands?
Or will they simply survive
to look for hope on another day?
 
Refugees tell the true story
of a world where life struggles to maintain
amid the rubble scattered
by presidents and generals
who live in opulence and greed;
who trade in proud speeches and intrigue.
 
Those who find peace
avoid the brutal boot heels of victory,
or find shelter and sustenance
from kind souls who do the penance
for a nation at war.
 
Even now
refugees wait,
stranded as it were,
between desolation and hope
while egocentric heads of state
test new bombs
that may swell the ranks
of refugees who tell
the true story of war.
 
                                      ~ Charles Kinnaird

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