Tsunami And The Angel Of Death Poem by Elizabeth Padillo Olesen

You spread your wings and cover the earth
with the claws of your fingers
You touch the bottom of the Indian Ocean
and unleash your fury to many lands.

The waters, the source of life,
become the bosom of death
The fishes miss their homes
Children, men and women,
tourists and local inhabitants
lose their names
and like garbage they are dumped
into mud and mass graves.

Your strange visit at Christmas time
sends a revolting shock that gives birth
to unbearable anguish and pain
and those who remain cannot hide
from the shadows of your wings.

And yet the waves of destruction you create
resonate waves of compassion
that enable each one to shed a tear
and offer a helping hand.