Gunshot Wounds

she pulled away her daughter’s hand
and told her that school would be fun
she told her to go play in the sand
or with the fake toy guns

there was a chill in the air, a wind which blew cold
little did she know what would come
how could she have foretold
that she would never hear her daughter say ‘mum’

bullets ripped through the walls
through the shattered and soundless hearts
they should be playing with baubles and balls
not sitting and ripping their minds apart

blood splattered across the floor
tears streamed down the faces of the soundless boys
destruction there could be no more
from the guns that were supposed to be toys

for the damage had already been done
the souls of the victims were beyond repair
how could they ever smile at the sun
when they are so filled with despair

tragedy strikes humanity once more
and before we see the approaching dawn
we need to fix our wounds when they’re sore
for the pain will help us go on

-Written by Sriya Raghini Peri