I believe
from this charred charnel-house
the spirit will rise, defiant in death's embrace.
Life lingers, disguised in ashen faces.
I believe
hands linked in the fashion of compassion
will reach, will pray, will find a way.
Whatever the cost, all is not lost.
I believe
the sap will surge again –
instinctive imperative of life's sweet urge.
Shoots of green will be seen anew.
I believe
we'll see the light from this burning torch.
Grim aftermaths require new paths –
the next generation’s regeneration.
A change in the wind can blow
hot rhetoric's embers aflame once more,
but youth will find truth,
I believe.
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Author Notes
Author's Note:
I took the accompanying photo a couple of months after the devastating 2009 Australian bushfires in Victoria. That year, the fire danger's most extreme rating designation was upgraded to "catastrophic".
It has all come true.
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