Free at last

The winds of change blew for the worse.
It seemed just like some evil curse,
But you eschewed all commonsense,
So others came to our defence.

We faced defeat, we stared into the abyss
And death for all of us who dared to resist.
The overwhelming force of a blitzkrieg so evil
Destroying everything that before was peaceful.

Abyss or not, we dared to fight,
But then, there came a blinding light.
No word to warn, a soulless spite,
For daring to resist your might.

Your heartless words showed no regret,
For what’s been lost and what is left.
Just rubble and ruins and so much pain
And wounded who must bury the slain.

No time to shout before they fell.
Our paradise turned into fiery hell
And I recalled the words you said,
As bombs flew past above my head.

You came to free us from Nazis who
Would stop us speaking, as we do.
You bombed, you killed us all and me
And now there’s no one left to free…

By Asieh V. Rail (1954-2023)
Translation by Sam V. Novnik
© Samuel V. Novnik 2023