by Katherine West
"As the Delta variant spreads, Republican reluctance will mean thousands more deaths."
—Salon, July 9, 2021
They come from far and near we don't know why
We hear them long before we see the crowd
We fear they come together now to die
Some try to staunch the flow of blood and lies
Some turn away, the noise of death too loud
They come from far and near we don't know why
They bring their children sick enough to fly
Their freedom flags now used to make their shrouds
We fear they come together now to die
Some recognize a neighbor with a cry
They look away their faces pale and proud
They come from far and near we don't know why
They fall before they cross the finish line
They call for help forgetting all their doubt
We fear they come together now to die
We watch their souls return to love and sky
The stain of rage and hate we can't wash out
They come from far and near we don't know why
We fear they come together now to die
Katherine West lives in Southwest New Mexico, near Silver City. She has written three collections of poetry: The Bone Train, Scimitar Dreams, and Riddle, as well as one novel, Lion Tamer. Her poetry has appeared in journals such as Writing in a Woman's Voice, Lalitamba, Bombay Gin, The New Verse News, Tanka Journal, Splash!, Eucalypt, and Southwest Word Fiesta. The New Verse News nominated her poem "And Then the Sky" for a Pushcart Prize in 2019. In addition she has had poetry appear as part of art exhibitions at the Light Art Space gallery in Silver City, New Mexico and at the Windsor Museum in Windsor, Colorado. Using the name Kit West, Katherine's new novel, When Night Comes, A Christmas Carol Revisited came out in 2020, and a selection of poetry entitled Raising the Sparks will come out in 2021, both published by Breaking Rules Publishing. The sequel to When Night Comes will also be released by BRP in 2021. It is called Slave, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Revisited. She is also an artist.