The Ones We Lost

My woundedheart
Bleeds black smoke and fire.
Scarred by years of violence,
Itbeats the drum of war
Of a nation torn asunder
By hate anddesperation.
It crumbles beneath the weight
Of wrenched beams and

twisted metal,
A lost support.
Its sanctity violated,
I crawlinside,
Rebuild the fallen walls,
And light a sacred candle
To pray forthose
Who will never return