LET US PRAY

LET US PRAY
(to save the lives of starving Ethiopian & Cambodian children)

Their dull, dusty and dismal faces
Their desolate and pitiable glances
Their deep-sunk lustreless eyes
Their desperate and gasping cries,
Alas ! At the fag-end of survival path
Afraid, they stare at the jaws of death.

Their shattered childhood visions
Their heart-breaking compulsions
Their soul-stirring dismal conditions
Their cries of the agonizing starvation,
Alas ! They fail to stir human hearts;
Every moment a budding life departs.

Yesterday was similar, today too even
Where is the concern for a co-human?
Children are they, stung by starvation
Lifeless are they, almost like skeletons
Alas ! Grasped by the tentacles of hunger
Their tearful eyes gape, seeking succour?

Pierced by the thorns of human neglect
The discontent of desertion clearly reflects,
Is there no end to the inhumane aspect?
Or, can’t we spare time to unfold the facts?
Alas ! Children are they, starving are they
A fist of food would save them for a day,
Pray God, starvation deaths are kept at bay.