181: A Word of Reason

The headline extends like a childhood friend:

“Woodland back to ‘medieval levels’” — wild nature

is returning to Britain.

It reads like aspirin after months of migraines

brought on by cages of people shouting

about pandemics and carbon emissions and deaths

and deaths and wildfires and deaths

and deaths and extinctions and deaths

and deaths and lung diseases and deaths

and deaths and revolutions and deaths

and if we support one thing we’re dead

and if we support nothing we’re dead

and if we support everything we’re still dead

and there’s no end to the deaths and people screaming in the streets

and millionaires and billionaires and politicians

flying across the country in their private jets

to have holidays on their private beaches

behind their private walls

in their private air where no-one screams and shouts and tells them,

“Death, death, death,”

while tongues lie twisting on the pavement like worms reminding us of death

and it’s all a red pool of madness and what’s a word of reason

in the face of all of this?

Death.

Death.

Death.

We know only death,

to ourselves (our pets), our families (our forests), our lovers (our Earth),

and we scream for bloody revolutions and march and sit at home

and watch it all on five screens at the same time and feel the pain

when none of us ever asked for this,

when no-one gave a second thought

to the world they were bringing more and more children into

as the population count goes from billion to billion

and there’s starvation and drought and more and more death

and yet we’re told that it’ll all be fine, we just need to listen

to those older than us who will die

before the Earth is destroyed anyway

and we weep because what’s a word of reason

against all this madness anyway?

All we ever wanted was a life of peace, an education,

a meal and a drink, and someone to share it all with,

but all we find are Armageddons every second week,

revolutions on every street,

and death.

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Written by: Katrine Hjulstad

Instagram: @katrinehjulstad

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Publisher's note: Please note that all poetry published with Eudaemonia Records has been seen by our editors, and that the editors have suggested revisions where they see fit, but we believe that it is ultimately the writer's decision to accept or reject any suggestions and take no responsibility for which suggestions they accept or reject.