Let us travel back in time
A long and winding road to climb
Prepare yourself for the ride
As we journey far and wide
Where peoples of all free nations
Use instant communications
When extremist groups attack
Ordinary men fight back
With turmoil in the Middle East
We want less war and far more peace
For we have learnt from our forebears
Remember all their woes and cares
Families were split by walls
There were no well-stocked shopping malls
Rationing for clothes and food
With elders in a sombre mood
For all their friends they lost in war
Or planes above their heads did soar
And bombs scattered all over town
No wonder men did wear a frown
Who’d seen it all just years before
In horrors of the first world war
Succumbed to gas or simply shot
Survivors living with shell-shock
Yet more were lost to spanish flu
Doctors helpless what to do
Now let us learn from lessons past
And dare not to forget too fast
How rapidly the world can change
With inventions that span a range
There is room for so much good
For everybody’s livelihood
Despite the knowledge free for all
And contact quick with just a call
The truth is ignorance is bliss
Others troubles easy to miss
Please let us then act with care
Remembering we have to share
© Alison Mitchell 2023-06-16