Scream out FIRE!
Guys running down the driveway
Their future was young, but it
Swallowed them alive
What fun it used to be
Hanging out
By the pool parlour
Their fragile lives
Chances thrown
Overthrown by a domineering power
They came from their villages,
But woke up to shattered dreams
One t-shirt reads “tabu soro” and they did
Smoking under the street light
Choking all fire lights
It took them 18 years to get this far
They sit
Bury heads in hands
Crying
End Note:
This was written during the Coup of 2000. I remember rioting and looting, whilst sitting at the back of the TV company vehicle which I worked for, (my first job after my return from my New Zealand
I remember going to the public hospital, trying to find medical supplies for my mother and as I walked towards the old grand hospital, I saw on the streets a group of young men possibly running away from the looting, some were limping, some moaning in pain, some bleed profusely. They had visible fresh cuts and bruises on their bleeding faces and arms. It inspired me to write about how young people can be so naïve and so ignorant. Perhaps they are going through an experience which may change their lives later.
