Inside a church in Normandy
A priest is taken hostage; why?
Two Muslims—for their piety—
Decided he would have to die.
How could the incident unfold—
The aged padre made to kneel;
A man of eighty-four years old—
Is death all that Islamists deal?
Before the altar when he knelt,
In Arabic, their sermon, said,
The blow that the Jihadis dealt
Cut-off the aged padre’s head.
Even, as you have heard about
“Incidents” in the Middle East,
So, Normandy’s not too far out
To slay an aged Catholic priest.
Yet, it has hardly made a dent—
(A padre giving up his ghost)
Disturbing though an incident—
Distracts a person over toast;
And, if it sent a shock between
A cup of coffee and croissants,
To hear about the bloody scene
In Normandy, away in France,
It doesn’t any difference make
For one who stays so distant to
What goes on over there to take
Your interest away from you—
For you have flowerpots to tend,
To Voltaire you enjoy to cite,
Who is your “garden” in the end
To cultivate for your delight.
Topical
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