I Read The News

The Ukrainian advance batters
Russian defenses and, while daring
For the quick strike, it stretches
On as small steps fail to
Dislodge fully and immediately
The Enemy.

Uyghurs shiver and fear as Beijing
Bosses compel, impel,
Imprison the men, the mothers,
The daughters, the sons, old men,
The small kids.

Juntas jail the duly elected,
Upending decade old alliances,
That, truth be told, 
Benefited the people there, and here.

Jerusalem, Jerusalem, we weep
For you, the bitter tears of
Millennia.

I sit in my backyard
Watching the blossoming 
Tomatoes, eating my wife’s 
Delicious gazpacho, 
A white butterfly flitting from pink
To white to purple bud, as
I bless the meal and day,

Hoping, also praying, that the
Infinite One will bless and protect
Those who labor in crisis and pain and
That one day the Infinite One will
Place them in a fragrant backyard,
To watch butterflies and enjoy
Gazpacho and freshly harvested summer fruit.