Here is the third poem I am posting from The History Hotel.
Reasons of State
Here is the murdered child.
Here is the murdered mother
And another and another.
Here are the reasons of state.
Here is the leader who
Severely gesticulates,
Invents necessities,
While history pouts and yawns—
More blood for more treaties.
They were crossing a street.
They were fleeing to elsewhere.
They held hands. “My sweet,”
The mother said, “hold tight.”
Here are the reasons of state:
Someone barks—you fight.
Books are full of this.
But not the child or mother
Or another and another.
“If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face—for ever.”
― George Orwell, 1984
A powerful and o so true poem. Thank you.