Poland’s Tragedy – 96

On the occasion of the terrible tragedy,
I offer this poem to the memory of the victims.

96

The Vistula flows backward today
From the shoreline of Gdansk
To the watershed of the Carpathian
Even her banks are weeping

For sorrow is a flooded field
For whom springtime will not come
The early shoots of rye retreat
Beneath the rising waters

Justice is the asking question
The why? The how? Why us?
In the mouths of half-mast fathers
And mothers with bleary eyes

Red & White today black-banded
What’s lofty rises half its height
Though unified in sorrow stand
Her mass of grieving mourners

Too early for the words to mean
But spring-time seems to say
Should ninety-six have to perish
May death bridge old divides

Be comforted, Polska, to know
The Eagle is not alone, nor will be
For as She stands for freedom
For freedom stands the world

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Article on Lech Kaczynski from The Economist
Article I co-authored with Wojciech Kosc for Transitions Online
(Contact me for full text)