Ripped from our land,
veins and arteries exposed.
My man must remain,
defend the homeland.
There’s a hole in my heart,
organs excised.
For the sake of my children, I go.
Cranes come, settle, comfort and
protect us from dangerous snakes.
Clouds of blue and yellow
remind us of our home.
It’s not all roses.
We will remember.
About the Poem
The stories of families being separated, women and children fleeing Ukraine, the men being asked to stay behind to fight.
About the Author
Lynne Kemen lives in Upstate New York. Her chapbook, More Than A Handful was published in 2020. She has published or has forthcoming poems in Silver Birch Press, The Ravens Perch, Fresh Words Magazine, Spillwords, Topical Poetry. She is on the Board of Bright Hill Press in Treadwell, NY, and is an Editor for The Blue Mountain Review and The Southern Collective, both in Atlanta, GA. https://www.lynnekemen.com/