It wasn’t a roar or explosion,
no cheering or fanfare at all
The dirge that rang from the rafters
Silently fell as they took up her pall.
No lavishly gilt invitations,
no clarion sounded the call.
The headlines that graced the newspapers
bore witness to no one at all.
Blind to the bonds of humanity; dignity, pride, and such pain
Justice for some, but not others, a mere mocking reflection remains.
Under gaudy bright lights and cheap tinsel,
Beneath streamers and sparklers aflame.
She softly reclined by their embers, never to rise up again.
She didn’t cry out bloody murder,
neither did scream nor klaxon resound.
Not even the softest whimper was heard;
she made not an audible sound.
As paradise sank so deep down to hell and the proud men beat their drums;
they donned their caps and slogans while they brandished up their guns.
When they said your eyes deceived you and the truth was being spun,
when you turned against your brothers for the politicians that they’d run.
When you feared the poor and starving and you locked yourselves inside,
When you blocked off all the world you knew leaving nowhere else to hide.
While we were busy with distractions and the talking heads droned on,
as we squabbled over talking points and everyone was wrong.
Still no one paid her any mind or noticed she was gone
The free world ended yesterday, when democracy died with a yawn.
by D. Ryan Lafferty
Literary Crumbs: Poems & Short Stories to Savor by D. Ryan Lafferty 