VIVA

VIVA

A flag now flies at half mast
Forlornly blue, white, red
Events tragic not long past
On eyelids… in our heads
Utter pointless tragedy
In muted shock, appalled
Wars are fought in war zones
That’s why they are so called
Not in public places
Where innocence convenes
Terrorism is not war
Religion can't redeem
The misbegotten followers
Disciples lost their way
Travelling with half a map,
… half a book in play
A street map sold by cowards, fools
Bought from western shelves
Lacking conviction, moral tools
To tread such paths themselves
Ideally a state of mind
A product of the west
Seeded from books holy
Yet not the whole book’s text
Cherry picked, parts radical
The people most extreme
People on life’s fringes
Looking for a dream
To fix the nightmares of their days,
bringing terror to a world
Vulnerable detached, they’re played
... and tragedies unfurl
Slaughtering the flock, the sheep
As shepherds seem unscathed
With little meaning, life is cheap
With crooks, unhooked, depraved
Killing those who live in peace,
whose message will not die
Flags may change, they will not cease
… they will forever fly
Fly with different colours
Countries bleeding into one
Swirling midst such cullers
As we watch the patterns run
Flying now at half mast
Like many in its stead
Swinging proudly in the wind
A tragic blue, white, red