We Cry For Food And They Give Us Bullets Poem by Elizabeth Padillo Olesen

We Cry For Food And They Give Us Bullets

Rating: 5.0


Food! Food! Food!
It is all that we need
It is all that we need
to calm down our spirits!

It is food that fills
that fills the empty pangs
of our stomachs,
pangs that make us yawn
but cannot sleep
that make us gulp
but cannot vomit,
that make our saliva
taste sour and acidic!

We cry for food
like the helpless little children
with the art to attract attention
by our street demonstrations.
Yes, we cry for food like little children
to calm down our spirits,
that the cry cannot at all be neglected
for it is food,
it is food that soothes our spirits.

But you give us bullets
on the streets where we stage
our cry for food
You give us bullets
instead of food.

But even bullets cannot silence
our cry for food
for as long as we`re hungry
we shall be like little children
that will ever cry for food.

POET'S NOTES ABOUT THE POEM
Remembering the massacre in Escalante on the street demonstration in Negros Oriental during the Marcos dictatorship in the Philippines.
COMMENTS OF THE POEM
Shabeeh Haider 11 November 2014

A sad state of affairs in our world. Wonderfully expressed

2 0 Reply
Elizabeth Padillo Olesen 26 November 2013

Thanks for your comment to this entry, dear Kelvin.

2 0 Reply
Kelvin Owusu 02 December 2012

a beautiful piece of poetry this is, thanks for writing this, it reminds me of momma africa, hopefully one day what my people need will be given rather than what makes money for a corrupt government, an excellent write

4 0 Reply
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