A poem by Flora Haberman – 9th grade.

In the smoke are crowds, huddled in the dark
Mothers with trembling arms, wrapped around weeping children
No one can question what lurks in the black, the stark
A people; a target, blood red that cannot be hidden.
The fallen fragments of blasted brick, seas of dust
Listen to the prayers murmured beneath the belly of Kyiv
Bullet holes swallowing cities, hope rotting to rust
We wait, breath bated, as humanity deceives.
And all the while, it rains acid
In the mind of a man
Whom when faced with death is placid
Who’s will burns thousands from their land.
The world echoes with the sigh of a nation, bloody and tired,
Waiting for mercy that could come too late
Hear the call of the fallen as all hope goes expired
Listen closely, when nothing is left but napalm hate.
Whisper a wish to the stars that remain
Hold the calloused hand of peace
So that perhaps, in our frenzy, we might retain
The gasp of suffering, held brimming in the lungs of Ukraine-
waiting to be released.