LIBYA: 22 February 2011
21 February 2011: Gaddafi appears on Libyan state television clutching an umbrella
Gadaffi furls and unfurls his umbrella
a giant bat’s wing
in the desert
where it never rains
but tonight
bombs hail down from the sky
shredding pale flesh to lace…
red tear drops splatter
on the desert’s face
in this frail fight for freedom
where people scream into radio silence
and hospitals try to contain their pain.
Tell the world, the crying doctor implores,
he is killing the innocent –
we who want peace, only peace
and outside it storms, it storms
bullets thunder and flash
fires glow as buildings fall
– can you hear it, can you hear?
Ash blows, and bodies are laid below.
The madman flails his fists
rails at the ‘dogs’ of truth
declares his joy at being still here
where pain rains down
and the world can only gaze in awe
offering as little hope
as a white silk umbrella
to those who wring their hands at the skies.
SHARI EPPEL
