Ever since I was a child, I told myself I wasn’t interested in politics,
Even as I sat there whilst my mother watched the news on the tv.
I paid no mind to those speaking, nor to the meaning behind their words
Because ignoring the world’s chaos meant a life lived in carefree ecstasy.
But growing up, meant growing into the world
And listening out for the everchanging ‘modern issue’,
Realising that perhaps my ignorance didn’t allow for as much of an escape as I believed,
Because that which impacts the world, must also impact me too.
I think about those of you fighting in the gender battle:
Sisters, brothers, siblings, lovers- all of you, my family.
And I’m overwhelmed with survivors’ guilt, as I sit in safety and watch them die.
I’m sorry that you all sacrificed your lives, and I hope one day you can forgive me.
Some of you lost more than just your lives for this ‘modern issue’:
You lost your youth, your virginity, and your innocence.
But can we say these things were really lost, when they were never truly found?
Ripped away from your outstretched hands before you even had the chance
To grasp them; to keep them held tight; to claim them as your own,
Before someone manipulates you into thinking that it’s theirs,
Taking every part of your body and making it their own, until you become no one but
A ghost among us, so that we cannot see your pleading, like warning signs shot by red flares.
Sometimes I wonder how much longer the ‘modern issue’ will maintain in our world,
Because we all so frequently blame each other, saying it is the fault of the general population,
Forgetting about those who assumed a hierarchy, as if their power meant they could forget
To care for and protect the purpose of God’s creation;
In which case, I encourage you all to become sinners,
Turn on the ‘minority’ and force the blame onto the smaller group of humankind-
The ones who have the authorial ability to make the change for us, acting as the world’s body
And following the physical actions that we provide, being the world’s mind.
I think we all know that the less we do, the less we change,
And so, why do you still teach your children to believe your outdated ways?
Don’t you think that educating them about the ‘modern issue’
Would help them to live a better life in their future days?
Besides, none of you realise that the topics you teach kids eventually lose importance
Because really, they’re only tested on their ability to recite from their memory.
So maybe it is time we let them learn about the world through their own exploring eyes,
With the hope that this knowledge will stick with them and not disappear like some mystery.
Maybe this wasn’t the intention, but I do not know who else to shoot my words at
Because ‘War of the Worlds’ was meant to remain fictional and not become our reality.
So, I stand here, holding those of you at the top of the social ladder at gunpoint,
Begging with every ounce of my soul, to please use your power wisely
As I’m not sure we can keep fighting this ‘modern issue’ of war any longer.
Because our defence grows weaker with every person we have to watch pass,
Praying to God to let them rest in the peace that they deserve,
For they did not deserve to be part of the sacrificial mass.
Unfortunately, war isn’t the only place where violence occurs,
And the last place we would ever think of this happening would be a school.
But that happened, and now all I can wonder is: what did we do for this world to think
That we can accept such behaviour that is so irrevocably cruel?
If this isn’t happening in schools, then it is happening on the street,
Or in clubs, or in homes, or in places where you want to feel safe and protected,
Leaving no hope for the world because the justice system has clearly failed,
Meaning any claims against unnecessary violence will be blatantly deflected.
Even though violent crimes have existed for years, it is still a ‘modern issue’
Because now there is no motivation, people attack in an animalistic free-for-all,
And it seems that there is nothing we can do to stop this from happening
Apart from teach our children self-defence, before they even learn to crawl.
This is the ‘modern issue’ with our society-
Because every individual is the one to rightfully blame-
For as long as we each turn a blind eye and let someone else resolve the problem,
We are continuously striking a match, that will one day set the world aflame.
Image: Hasan Almasi, via Unsplash