A cracked bell will toll
the round dice will roll
as pot bangers hang
on the rails
A gambling wheel spins
a short Russian pins
tin medals atop
a straw bale
A hard rain is fallin’
as mothers are callin’
their prayers are all
drowned by the wind
A man picks her pocket
then discards the locket
filled photos
dead family and friends ~
(reflections on war and peace in 2024)