A Ray Of Hope Poem by Jacquie StewartHeimann

I notice the quiet as I take a breath and move out
My boots crunching on gravel
Guns rattling on my back, my side and in my hands
My breathing feels loud in this oppressive silence
In the distance a dog barks
A lonely sound
When the streets should be full of life
I see all around, the devastation
Of buildings crumbling, cars burned
Blood splattered on the fallen walls
Soaking slowly into the ground
Holes where there should be parks
Rubble where there should be libraries and schools
Skeletal frames where there should be hospitals and homes
A child's toy lies in the dust
Broken, bloody, silent
I move on, slowly, quietly, watching, listening, praying
I hear a small noise, a little hum
I pause, freeze, barely breathing
Slowly, so slowly I move
Gun in hand, breath caught in my lungs
Nerves taut, fingers tighten every so slightly
I ease around the fallen wall
... and pause
A little girl sits, alone, humming in a fallen doorway
An old rag doll surround by broken cups
A tea party amongst the ruins
Oblivious to the fears, pain, desolation around
The sun breaks through bathing her in light
In the midst of war
A ray of sunshine, a ray of hope.