A Mourning Poem by Deva De Silva

I was raised with no cold steel at my hind
Nudging me to be straight backed
Bread not broken at religious tables
Wine not slurped in silver goblets
Women were not fair and light
Men were not strong and wise

I had the freedom
Of galloping horses
Set free by feared mothers
Roaming the land
Surging unleashed
Running free

World was mine to graze
With my confidence ablazed
At my fingertips swayed
My right to dream
With no surcharge or fee
To follow my destiny
As it was seen deemed
By none other than me

Free to wander in meadows
Valleys untouched by Coke cans
Led to trust in a fleeing deer’s instinct
Haunted by a pack of wolf snarls
warned to believe in a Scorpio’s sting,
Cause and effect that follow us to the end