Nikola

(A lone voice whispers)

Will you all still survive flocked together like starlings as one 

Before Tuesday 

5th of November 

With such interconnected surreal deep thoughts

Many in here ask 

In this great silence and whisper into its endless abyss 

Does will it last

Peace

This magical thing between so many others but only us when you read this

Echo in vivid colourful dreams while we stand still impatiently waiting

For that drunken call to summon us on the stroke of midnight on 5th of November 

While you all gather together in strange-looking masks 

To sing drunken pagan songs full of strong oaths or immoral convictions 

To try to still cling onto all those things you were brought up to respect and believe 

As you attempt to push back that congregation of darkness which will appear

With wide dilated eyes

Will you pray upon your now nearly bare altars of hope

 With just about anything used as a means to cope

As some of you kneel to pray to try to continually believe 

In political hope

Will the watchful eyes of our friend and one of life's many unspoken saviours

The Winters Sun 

Turn into sleet and rain

As it remembers the millions of lost souls who died in agonising pain

We in here can only pray she will still shine ever brighter

 To seed new faith as she still mourns and grieves

No one knows all the answers, my child 

Everlasting hope and some form of peace could arrive 

So you could maybe conquer this crazy new normal we all see

Or it could all go wild

And turn into a new savage garden which resets a dying society 

Where dreams and people are greedily consumed and repeatedly defiled 

By those in charge obsessed with creating constant streams of self absolved notoriety 

While the masses queue up alone standing two feet apart 

Defeated to believe it's conceivably the only way to survive 

Venturing around like tattooed indentured new AI-controlled slaves 

Or hiding lost in alleys 

Back rooms or doorways like unvaccinated exiles

All living blindly under the auspicious black red and white umbrella of a new world order

Called a Fool's Paradise

Will things change in 2024

Well, we'll wait and try to guide humanity 

For it still has a fighting chance for it's never too late

Copyright John Duffy