Illustration by Paola Bilancieri.

As children roam empty streets

Their eyes dried of tears

As the mentally challenged

Find no solace, no help

As single mothers

Ask in vain for food

Deprived of basic support and help

Unjustly taken away from them

As those with disabilities fight against their fate

And promised aid never comes

We wait for compassion to arrive

And show the best of us

Compassion for the weak and unprotected

Compassion for the targets of wanton brutality

Compassion for children with broken lives

And uncertain future

Compassion for those,

in the words of poet James Fenton,

“Students of calamity, graduates of famine,

Those whom geography condemns to war.”

Compassion will give meaning to our efforts

To have healthier, more fulfilling lives

Compassion will shower us with light

And help us create a better world.