09 February 2024

Toys of Deprivation

When something glares up
In the night sky and 
The kid who knows about 
The shooting stars makes 
Wishes.

He wishes for more and
More toys.

And after each bomb,
The children who survive,
Run from one end of the city
To the other in search
Of their wishes from
The previous night-

An unlimited supply of
Toys in the form of
Empty shells- Only to 
Fight over better variants-

The ones with a tinge of red 
Over the soot-loaded 
Blackened scraps- it could 
Have been the blood of
One of their parents.

But it doesn't matter,
I guess.

When the streets are washed 
In blood and hunger goes
Beyond stomach and gets 
To ones head. 

Crimson becomes another 
Shade of red and for 
The children without a home,
It's just paint.