Friendship In The Frontier Poem by Fathima Usman

The dry breeze wafted along the barbed wire;
The men in a spire; the scenery dire,
A handful of innocent children came near
To touch a lonely flower, to them very dear.

One fine day, a hole gaped new
On the thorny fence, noticed by few.
The children approached with fear on their faces,
Curiosity governing their trembling paces.

Surprise awaited them on the deadly hedge
For they saw children like them on the other edge.
Both of them were frightened at first
But later, laughter on their faces burst.

Only the stones and silence could praise
The games of these children, men cannot appraise.
Friends they became, and friends they were,
In spite of the sign that said, "Beware."

The games went on till a dreary day
When the battle betrayed their blessed play;
Men with guns stood where the children did,
Heartless and reckless; their farewells bid.

Screams of agony, bullets and shells,
Replaced the children's squeals and playful yells;
Blood seeped into the pores of sand
That had blissfully borne the feet of the playful band.

The little ones' hearts shrank to see death
Snatching away their fathers' breath;
Heavy loss was found on each side,
Mercy was something they shouldn't abide.

The raging war came to an end
And a new frontier separated the fiend.
Treaties signed with both the coasts
Seemed nothing but mockeries on the dead men's ghosts.

Some of the children were luckily spared,
And they came to see the friends they cared.
The young hearts were happy; to each other tell
That some of their friends were alive and well.

Day after day, they could be seen,
Their tear filled eyes bright and keen.
Children are ignorant of borders and enemy lands,
Befriending others on rival sands
Even through thorny fences that prick their hands.