A small boys wish

A small boy’s wish.

A small boy stands
On dry earth,
Surrounded by
Parched grass and
The skeletal bodies
Of his family.

On the horizon
Deadbeat lions laze
Under the trees, gaze
At the boy.
The vast glare
Of the setting sun
Burns their frail skin
As they wait for the help
That never seems to arrive.

Knowing what it’s like
To be without food,
Without water,
But most of all
Lacking the respect
Of fellow man.
The boy, full of fatigue,
Takes his last laboured breath,
Gives up, and
Falls to the ground.

As dead as the earth he stands on.
As dead as the heart of the world.