"Soldiering On"
The line of tanks looked frightening
Their target drawing near
Inside were soldiers praying
But could anybody hear
With orders swiftly given
And directions vaguely sent
What were the tanks all doing
What was the real intent
The soldiers queries cast aside
No answers were addressed
Just do as you've been told to do
And do what you do best
It horrified the soldiers
When they realized their mission
To **** their friends and neighbours
Just to feed one man's ambition
With their target just a mile away
The convoy stopped and turned
Their enemy was back at home
Their doubts were all confirmed
So forward to their homeland
Where smug murderers relax
Oblivious that their tanks return
To continue their attacks!
By David Whitney            c 2022

"We Pray"
God Bless the children
Caught up in a war
Some lost now forever
Some orphaned for sure
Some cradled some dying
In safe mothers arms
Some lost and bewildered
At the sound of alarms
Who'd welcome such suffering
They can't have a soul
They won't go to Heaven
They're out of control
How can they sleep peacefully
Knowing their crime
It's not war but ******
Disguised all the time
God Bless all those children
Their parents their race
God Bless everybody
Forced out of their place
May wisdom and knowledge
May truth pave the way
May Love always combat
What's evil
We Pray.
By David Whitney              c2022

"The Accused"

Thought I'd blotted the past behind me
But seems the ink has never dried
Memories still appear and haunt me
Eyes red with tears I've cried
Second chances never found me
Hopes and dreams rot on the shelf
Blame still firmly on my shoulders
But the blame's with someone else
Diary entry has the answers
But nobody wants the truth
Read between the lines I've written
If you want to find the proof
I was framed, I didn't do it
But everybody thinks I did
The real culprit was so clever
And his movements were all hid
In the end there must be justice
In the end I must be free
But at present I'm a shadow
Of the man I used to be
I huddle in the corner
Where the sunshine lights my face
Dreaming dreams of new tomorrows
In my freedom's warm embrace
But for now I chalk the days off
In my cold and lonely cell
Praying for a little justice
To release me from this hell.

by David Whitney           c2021

"From Bad To Worse"

The dinghy overcrowded
Wasn't worthy for the sea
The families crammed on the craft
Had no written guarantee
That they would reach land safely
To begin a better life
Fleeing from a war torn country
From the panic and the strife
For their journey fraught with danger
On a cruel and heartless course
Had the ocean showing who was boss
With a terrifying force
One family fell overboard
Their cries of panic lost
In the turbulence of water
Where the dinghy sadly tossed
A little child was pulled alive
His body icy cold
But his parents were no longer there
To comfort and to hold
They'd paid a fortune for the trip
And now paid with their lives
How desperate they had to be
How sick the devil drives
But still the people trust their luck
Whilst others fill their purse
A sorry state of greed and need
Fleeing from bad to worse.

The End                  by David Whitney c2021

"By Any Other Name"

The rain was pretty heavy
The shelter pretty dire
A leaky roof of broken tiles
A lantern and a fire
But this was life for Henry
A barren wooden shed
A draughty place
That he called home
A hay bale for a bed
A little dog his only friend
A mongrel he named Skip
Who he found wandering
Lost and weak
Upon a ******* tip
The two of them were happy
Though they didn't have a lot
But Henry prayed for them each night
Thanking God for all he'd got
A wealth of love and friendship
From a scruffy looking mutt
Who shared a life of poverty
In a dilapidated hut
Once a wealthy businessman
With justice on his side
Accused of theft and harassment
The man still had his pride
Whilst innocent the stigma stayed
So taking things in hand
The man left everything he owned
And took to roam the land
He didn't need the luxury's
That nearly cost his life
He didn't want to live
Like he was balanced on a knife
With 'Skip' he'd found companionship
That didn't judge or blame
A life so sweet and simple
A love by any other name.

The End by David Whitney               c2021

"Every Tear"
(a poem in memory of those lost to Covid 19)

Bless the new Angels in Heaven
Those people we lost this last year
The lives sadly taken from families
The love shown in every tear
The hearts left in pieces, the sadness
The questions un answered, the pain
Each life, a precious soul taken
The grief that will always remain
In memories ,smiles and in laughter
Those moments you'll never regret
The face that you now try to picture
The voice you try not to forget
All those people now out of the picture
As each life tries to cope with despair
Hoping they'll walk through the door soon
And sit on their favourite chair
Tears roll and eyes red with crying
Stare blankly to greet a new day
Life has to go on though your weeping
And the love in your heart paves the way.

The End  by David Whitney    c2021

"Different Place"

It was such a tiring journey
Over rough and rugged land
The little lad was six years old
Too young to understand
That the water he was seeking
Would be filled with germs and waste
Not clear or safe for drinking
But so dangerously laced
He had no shoes upon his feet
The water *** immense
Once filled with ***** water
Far too heavy to make sense
But fill he must, his family
Depended on his quest
So Imari as the boy child
Had to do his very best
He didn't realise the world
Was so unfairly shared
That water ran free from a tap
Not preciously so spared
That children played in water parks
Had water pistol fights
Had baths and showers daily
Drank sweet water based delights
No struggles through a barren land
To fill a water ***
Yet taking things for granted
Never blessing what they've got
A different world beyond his grasp
A different selfish place
Where riches and possessions
Put a smile upon a face
Maybe one day young Imari
Will be able to progress
But as Mars seems more important
I think the world is in a mess.

The End           by David Whitney     c 2021