Acrimony

Rage and grief are second cousins
Once removed perhaps,
But relatives in blood and bone.

History, though written on the page
By conquerors and politicians,
Is savagely grafted upon the bones
Of survivors,
And burned upon the minds
Of blood witnesses,
And upon the souls of children.

Childhood ripped from the innocent,
Festers and grows
Among the weeds of savage gardens.
Bright memories of freedoms stolen,
Tarnish and darken.
The patina of acrimony,
And the verdigris of vengeance
Wait, in silence, clenched among the shadows...

Beneath your bed, Putin.

Mick McKellar
March 2022

Cultural memory can be a long-suffering and potent enemy. Putin's progress may produce his doom. He thinks he can rewrite history, but doesn't credit everywhere it will be written.

Mick